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THE 


HEAYENLY RECOGNITION: 

OR, 

AN EARNEST AND SCRIPTURAL DISCUSSION 


OF THE QUESTION, 


Itfill ini litntn nnr /riutia in Behibb? 




Ri 


BY 


REV. H. IIARBAUGH, A. M., 

n 7 7 

AUTHOR OF “HEAVEN; OR, THE SAINTED DEAD.” 


She goeth unto the grave to weep there. 

John xi. 31. 


PHILADELPHIA: 
LINDSAY AND BLAKISTON. 
1851. 



&U47 

•Htis 

Copy & 


Entered, according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1S51, by 
REV. H. HAR BAUGH, 

in the Office of the Clerk of the District Court of the United States 
in and for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 


STEREOTYPED BY J. PAGAN. 


PRINTED BY C. SHERMAN. 




THE REV. DAVID HARBAUGH, 

MY YOUNGEST BROTHER, 

UNDER WHOSE ENCOURAGING INQUIRIES 
THESE PAGES HAVE, 

FOR THREE YEARS, 

BEEN PROGRESSING TOWARD THEIR PRESENT 

completion: 

AND 

TO WHOM I FEEL JOINED 
FOREVER 

.IN KINDRED AND IN CHRIST, 

2Tf)fs Volume, 

IN FIRM FAITH OF THE 

HEAVENLY RECOGNITION, 

IS AFFECTIONATELY 

DEDICATED. 









- 















PREFACE. 


Our friends in Heaven—shall we see and know them again ? 
This is my theme. I have written this book because I love 
the subject of which it treats. It was, therefore, not a toil, 
but a pleasure. It was in my heart before it was in my mind; 
and it grew up there like a flower, living and fragrant, to my 
own soul. If life, warmth, and tenderness do not now glow 
upon its leaves, it is because the mind has spoiled the image 
in transferring the impression. What a pity, we are some¬ 
times tempted to say, that it is so hard to make a picture for 
others of what we ourselves see and feel! I have done as well 
as I could. 

Three years ago, the Author published a work entitled: 
u Heaven; or, An Earnest and Scriptural Inquiry into the 
Abode of the Sainted Dead.” While writing that book, the 
thought of writing this gradually waked up in my mind: 
hence, at the close of that book occurs the following passage: 
“ Here I lay down my pen, but here do I not end my medita¬ 
tions on the heavenly land. My thoughts, and feelings, and 
hopes, crowd onward still.” That may be taken as a promise 
or prophecy of what is here fulfilled. Here, accordingly, we 
1 * (v) 



VI 


PREFACE. 


offer the fruits of three years’ farther meditation on the heavenly 
world. We feel the more encouragement in offering this ad¬ 
ditional- contribution to this department of pious inquiry, 
because it is one of those peaceful themes which, even in the 
present distracted and divided state of the church, is not likely 
to excite any sectional jealousies. In the hope of another and 
a better life, we are all one. 

The Author believes that human nature generally, and par¬ 
ticularly in this age, is too prone to disjoin the material and 
spiritual, the finite and infinite, the temporal and eternal, and, 
consequently, also the kingdom on earth and the kingdom in 
heaven. God, in the Incarnation of his Son, has for ever 
united these, and brought them into living and loving sympathy 
with each other. Time and space are annihilated in 11 Jesus 
Christ, the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever.” In 
Him we are raised above the ruins of the Past — above the 
changes of the Present — and above the fears of the Future. 
In proportion as we rise, by faith in Him, above all frag¬ 
mentary and sectional ideas into communion with the general, 
the catholic, the infinite, and the absolute—in that proportion 
will we escape the downwafS tendencies towards the sordid 
regions of sense, and the more refined but chilling abstractions 
of Rationalism, both in its spiritualistic and materialistic ex¬ 
tremes. God has made the heavens above us higher, broader, 
deeper, and more magnificent than the earth, that we might be 
overawed by them; and he has made them more bright and 
beautiful than the earth, that they might allure us. Morally, 
as well as physically, God has hung the earth fast to the hea¬ 
vens, and controls it by a law of gravitation whose centre is 


PREFACE. 


Vll 


there; and hereby He would shadow forth to us the truth, 
that our spirits, in all their affections, should hinge and turn 
upon the high, the infinite, the heavenly. Our proper position 
therefore is, to stand like the high-priest before the altar, and, 
in devout reverence and worship, to stretch forth our hands 
towards the heavens, while our hearts also rise thitherward in 
humble but earnest hope and love. We must embrace the 
infinite and heavenly, in all its forms, if we would be devout. 

We, therefore, firmly believe that our hearts will become 
better by being filled with heavenly thoughts. This can be 
done by sitting together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 
and meditating upon the eternal inheritance which He has in 
reserve for us. The reader will discover how much Christ is 
made the centre and substance of this book; and how the hope 
of our eternal union with our sainted friends is ultimately re¬ 
solved into our union with Him. This is a feature in this 
doctrine of future recognition—and the most important one— 
which we have not been able to discover in all that we have 
found written on this subject, in any degree of prominence. 
We believe that this is the real basis of the doctrine, which 
serves to make all other arguments in its favor consistent and 
living. To this feature, and to the historical manner in which 
we have treated the subject, we respectfully invite the reader’s 
special attention, as being, in our estimation, of the greatest 
importance. 

We have carefully studied all we could find on this interest¬ 
ing subject, and acknowledge ourselves more or less indebted 
to those from whom we occasionally quote, and whose names 


Vlll 


PREFACE. 


are generally referred to, or placed in the margin. We have 
aimed at making this a full discussion of the subject; and 
have therefore pursued it, so far as we could find any light to 
lead us, into all its details. This has enlarged the book, but 
it will hardly be considered a fault. We have not consciously 
admitted any thing irrelevant. 

It will be seen, we hope, on every page that we have not 
followed the subject as one merely of vain curiosity, but with 
a sincere desire also that it might produce its practical fruits. 
We have been anxious that it should not only afford consola¬ 
tion, but also make the heart better. We have endeavored to 
keep prominently before the mind of the reader the solemn 
fact that the heavenly society of which this book treats it may 
never be his happiness to enjoy, — that the only ground upon 
which he can safely rest his hope of reunion in heaven with 
his sainted friends is his own personal union on earth with 
Him “of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is 
named. ” 

Standing in the deepest reverence of soul before the solemn 
mysteries of that holy world into which this book presumes to 
cast an humble look, and in the name of our adorable Saviour, 
I lay this offering at His sacred feet. May He pardon what 
is wrong, and bless what is good, to the consolation of the 
saints, and to the advancement of His own great Kingdom of 
Eternal Love. 


Lancaster, Sept. 8, 1851. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER I. 

THE SAINTED DEAD. 

Introductory reflections.Page 17 

CHAPTER II. 

THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION AMONG PAGANS. 

Pagan ideas of a future life. The earnest expectation of 
the creature. Why this chapter is introduced. The idea 
of future recognition in Homer's poems. The ideas of 
Socrates. Beautiful quotation. The heathen commit 
suicide in sorrow that they may meet their friends sooner 
in the future life. Widows burning themselves on the 
funeral pyres of their husbands. Sacrificing human 
beings as attendants at the death of kings and chiefs. 
Sending messages with the dead — the Gymnosophists. 

The idea of future recognition among Roman philoso¬ 
phers. Cicero—extract. Virgil. Modern pagans. Ex¬ 
tract from Dr. Leland. The Indians of America. Slaves 
from Africa. Sighings and sorrowings. Comforts. 
Friendships. Skeptics. Live and love. No tears for the 
dead 


(ix) 


24 





X 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER III. 

THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION A UNIVERSAL BELIEF, 
HOPE, AND DESIRE. 

This faith is universal. So is the desire. All universal 
ideas are true. This is proved from the idea of the exist¬ 
ence of a God — the soul’s immortality — sacrifice and 
atonement. Fragments prove a whole. Reason never 
reaches the universal. Humanity is no lie. The idea of 
future recognition spontaneous. Farther deductions and 
proofs from its universality. I. This idea grows with 
Christianity. II. It grows in each heart with grace. 

III. It is more firmly held by saints than by sinners. 

IV. It is most active in the deepest sorrow. Universal 

desire is also a proof of its truth in the same way. Prac¬ 
tical observations. The human race a brotherhood. The 
world is not all fragments. The kingdom of the dead a 
catholic kingdom. Human tears promote fellowship. 
Love for the dead. Communion with them. 46 

CHAPTER IV. 

THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION IN THE LIGHT OF 
REASON. 

The dead before the resurrection. No separate discussion 
necessary. Why ? Spiritual peculiarities by which recog¬ 
nition can take place. Spirits not human do know each 
other. The scriptures make no difference. Will recog¬ 
nition take place on sight, or gradually ? Exhibitions of 
both. Why is this doctrine reasonable. I. The same 
means which will enable us to identify ourselves will also 
enable us to recognize our friends. II. Memory will 
continue in the future life. III. The social law lies 
deeply and radically imbedded in our nature. IV. Some 
interruptions by death, which seem, in the nature of 
things, to require completion in a future life. V. The 
final Judgment involves details which show that recogni- 



CONTENTS. 


XI 


tion is reasonable and natural. VI. Our knowledge, 
in the future life, will be enlarged in general and in par¬ 
ticular. VII. The interest which heavenly beings take 
in the affairs of saints on earth induces us to believe the 
idea of future recognition reasonable. A pleasant con¬ 
clusion ... 66 


CHAPTER V. 

THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION AMONG THE JEWS. 

The Jewish twilight. Progress in this doctrine. The Jews 
knew of a future life. They believed in future recogni¬ 
tion. Proofs. I. The care and affection with which they 
disposed of the bodies of their dead points to the hope 
and belief in future reunion. II. Their strong desire to 
be buried with their kindred. III. The manner in which 
they spake of their dead, as “ gathered to their people.” 

IV. This doctrine is seen in some examples of pure and 
disinterested friendship. V. This doctrine is seen in the 
conduct of David at the death of his child, and the way 
he consoled himself. VI. This doctrine appears also in 
later prophets. This faith among the Jews was implicit. 85 

CHAPTER VI. 

THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION IN THE TEACHINGS 
OF CHRIST. 

The object of Christ’s mission into the world. He spake 
incidentally of heaven. The doctrine of heavenly recog¬ 
nition in hints and allusions. Proofs. I. This doctrine 
is involved in the nature of that kingdom which Christ 
established on earth, and which is to continue in heaven. 

II. We see this doctrine in what Christ says of heaven as 
the home of the saints. III. We find this doctrine in the 
Saviour’s representations of the final Judgment. IV. This 
doctrine appears in several passages of the Saviour’s 
teachings. We first feel it true, and then know it. Con¬ 
clusion. Poetry by Bp. Mant.. 116 




CONTENTS. 


xii 


CHAPTER VII. 

THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION AMONG THE 
APOSTLES. 

The Apostles’ ideas of another life — of the kingdom of 
Christ — of our union with each other in this kingdom — 
of the identity of the Church on earth and in heaven. 
Hints and allusions. They expected to present their con¬ 
verts in the day of Christ’s coming. The pastor’s joy, 
hope, and crown in heaven. Those asleep in Jesus—true 
consolation in regard to them. A look into heaven from 
Patmos, and sights which were seen. Charity never fail- 
eth. Holy love, and mere passion. A beautiful poem by 
Southey. Light from a happy land...142 


CHAPTER VIII. 

THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION AMONG THE CHRIS¬ 
TIAN FATHERS. 

Why we desire to know their sentiments. The affection 
they showed towards their pious dead. They visit the 
place where they are buried. Their desire for martyr¬ 
dom. Their horror at the Roman practice of burning the 
bodies of the dead. The affecting burial of Cyprian by 
his flock. They associated the remembrance of the dead 
with their religious services. They buried them around 
the church. They celebrated the anniversary of their 
death upon the graveyards. Partook of the communion 
in token of an unbroken union with them. Quotation 
from Neander. Cyprian consoling his flock. Drawing 
near to the dead in love. Heavenly attractions — an ex¬ 
tract. St. Ambrose. Venerable and anointed ideas.... 159 



CONTENTS. 


Xlll 


CHAPTER IX. 

THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION AMONG THEOLO¬ 
GIANS. 

The value of this kind of testimony. No new or strange 
idea. Its catholicity. A clear and fresh stream among 
fragments. 170 

Section I.— argumentative extracts. 

Dr. Martin Luther. Melancthon. Cruciger. Olevianus. 
Scaliger. Calvin. Thomas Bacon. Arch. Wm. Paley. 

Rev. Charles Drelincourt. Rev. Dr. Edwards. Rev. Dr. 
George Christian Knapp. Rev. John Dick, D. D. Rev. 

Bp. George Burgess. Rev. William Jay. Rev. J. W. Nevin, 

D.D. 172 

Section II.— allusions to this idea, taking it for granted. 

Rev. Dr. John Tillotston. Rev. Richard Baxter. Bishop 
Hall. Dr. Doddridge. Melvill. Rev. Dr. J. F. Berg... 183 

Section III.— consolatory extracts. 

Ulrich Zwinglius. Bunyan. Rev. William Dodd, D. D. 
George Herbert. Dr. P. Doddridge. Lavel. Dr. Thomas 
Chalmers. Rev. John Newton. Fenelon. Rev. John 
James, D. D. Rev. Thomas Smyth, D. D. Rev. S. S. 
Schmucker, D. D. 187 


CHAPTER X. 

THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION AMONG THE POETS. 

Orpheus. The power of music and poetry. A still sweeter 

charmer. The true end of poetry. 

Q 


195 






XIV 


CONTENTS. 


Section I.—argumentative poetry. 

Recognition in Heaven. Heavenly Recognition. The Draw¬ 
ings of the Dead. The Indian Mother. Love. Know¬ 
ledge of each other in Heaven. Not lost, hut gone before 197 


Section II.— incidental allusions. 

How easily the heart slides into this idea. How extensively 
it is taken for granted. Something for mothers alone. 

The dead will receive us into heaven. The strongest de¬ 
sire of bereaved hearts. The love of sisters. Proverbial 
poetry. The heavenly meeting. A secret which all can¬ 
not possess. An increasing treasure. A treasure removed, 
but not lost. A Mother’s Lament. Departed friends. 
Visions by starlight. Ileber’s portrait. A mother’s pic¬ 
ture in the parlor. The Dying Child.203 


Section III.— consolatory poetry. 

The vein which poets follow. The idea on which they end. 
Leaving ninety and nine, and seeking one that is lost. 
Sorrow makes us dull. The poet a confidential friend. 
They speak in us. Reunion above. Rev. Charles Wesley. 
Sorrow with hope. The babe that only sleeps. A thought 
for an unconverted person. My Boy. Not lost, but gone 
before. Treasures in the arms of Christ. Dreams of 
Heaven. The Burial of an Emigrant’s Child. Weep not 
for her. Something for social singing circles. Reunion 
above. A beautiful vision through a tear. Kiss the 
hand that wounds you. Unwritten poetry. Sarah B. 
Judson—a “ green islet” in the ocean, and a grave on it. 

A ray in deep darkness. 212 




CONTENTS. 


XV 


CHAPTER XI. 

OBJECTIONS TO THE DOCTRINE OF HEAVENLY 
RECOGNITION. 


Introductory remarks.231 

Obj. I.—The great change which will take place in death.. 233 
Obj. II.—If it were true, it would he more clearly revealed. 239 
Obj. III.—The heavenly life will he much higher than this. 241 


Obj. IV.—It will introduce partiality into heaven . 242 

Obj. V.—The love of Christ will occupy us entirely . 244 

Obj. VI.—Christ’s answer to the Sadducees . 246 


CHAPTER XII. 

ANOTHER OBJECTION TO THE DOCTRINE OF 
HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 

THE KNOWLEDGE OF OUR LOST FRIENDS WOULD GIVE US PAIN. 

This objection appeals more to the feeling than to the judg¬ 
ment. It can he satisfactorily answered. Various con¬ 
siderations. I. In death all ties that are not sanctified hy 
the life and power of grace must he dropped and left 
behind. II. Those that are lost will gradually fade from 
our remembrance. III. There may he room for some 
uncertainty as to whether they are lost or not. IV. We 
have positive evidence that a knowledge of beings lost, 
who were once objects of affection, is not incompatible 
with heavenly felicity. The case of Christ — of angels. 

V. Our will will be entirely conformed to God’s will. In¬ 
stances as illustrations. Poetry.253 







XVI 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER XIII. 

THE DOCTRINE OF HEAVENLY RECOGNITION IN 
ITS PRACTICAL EFFECTS. 

“What good?” The tendency of error — of truth. The 
Saviour’s rule. The belief in this doctrine exerts a good 
influence. I. It elevates, strengthens, and purifies all our 
earthly affections. II. It will induce us to form only 
pious friendships. III. It will bring us strongly under 
the power of heavenly realities and attractions. IV. It 
presents a strong and touching motive to piety. V. It is 
consoling to the pious under bereavements. The end ... 273 


I 


THE 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


CHAPTER I. 

'fljt Ininhit Dcnir. 

My mother! when I learned that thou wast dead, 

Say, wast thou conscious of the tears I shed I 
Hover’d thy spirit o’er thy sorrowing- son, 

Wretch even then, life’s journey just begun ! 

Perhaps thou gav’st me, though unfelt, a kiss; 

Perhaps a tear, if souls can weep in bliss— 

Ah, that maternal smile! it answers — yes ! 

I heard the bell toll’d on the burial day, 

I saw the hearse that bore thee slow away, 

And, turning from my nurs’ry window, drew 
A long, long sigh, and wept a last adieu! 

But was it such! — It was. — Where thou art gone, 
Adieus and farewells are a sound unknown. 

May I but meet thee on that peaceful shore, 

The parting word shall pass my lips no more! 

COWPER. 

The Sainted Dead ! they are our treasures ! Like 
the inheritance upon which they have entered, they are 
incorruptible, undefiled, and they fade not away, but 
are reserved in Heaven. 

Ho ! ye that would be rich — ye that seek for trea¬ 
sures— seek them not on earth. Earth yields only 
2* (17) 


18 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


that which is mortal and perishable. That which dies 
seeks the earth, not that which lives. “ Earth to earth, 
ashes to ashes, dust to dust.” This our fathers have 
repeated, and this they have experienced. They die 
quickly, the flowers of earth. It rusts soon, the gold 
of earth. They fade surely, the gems of earth. They 
must perish, the foundations of earth — if not before, 
in the flames of the last fire. Ho! ye that seek for 
treasures: they are our treasures — living treasures — 
the Sainted Dead. 

Let us look upward. That is the destiny of spirits. 
It is the earth which whirls and moves; the heavens 
stand permanent and sure. While the earth grows 
hoary with age, while empires fall and nations die, 
while the habitations of the dead are becoming more 
than habitations of the living, while all things around 
us change and fade, the heavens still look down serene 
as of old upon this changing and restless earth. The 
stars which wink to us a loving “upward” —how 
changeless! They are the same which Abraham and 
Job saw, and which, ages ago, 

“ Gladdened, on their mountain tops, the hearts 
Of the Chaldean shepherds, till they poured 
Themselves in orisons.” 

So calm, changeless, cheering, and loving, are the saints 
in light. Not like the false, fading glare of earthly 
treasures, is their pure and imperishable radiance; for 
they “ shine as the brightness of the firmament, and 
as the stars for ever and ever.” They are our trea¬ 
sures— changeless and shining treasures — the Sainted 
Dead. 


THE SAINTED DEAD. 


19 


Let us look up hopefully. “Not lost, but gone be¬ 
fore.” Lost only like the stars of morning that have 
faded into the light of a brighter heaven. Lost to 
earth, but not to us. When the earth is dark, then 
the heavens are bright. When objects around us be¬ 
come indistinct and invisible in the shades of night, 
then objects above us are more clearly seen. So is the 
night of sorrow and mourning; it settles down upon 
us like a lonely twilight at the grave of our friends; 
but then already they shine on high. While we weep, 
they sing! While they are with us upon earth, they 
lie upon our hearts refreshingly, like the dew upon 
flowers; when they disappear, it is by a power from 
above that has drawn them upward, and, though lost 
on the earth, they still float in the skies. Like the 
dew that is absorbed from the flowers, they will not 
return to us; but, like the flowers themselves, we will 
die, yet only to bloom again in the Eden above. Then 
those whom the heavens have absorbed, and removed 
from us, by the sweet attraction of their love, made 
holier and lovelier in light, will draw toward us again 
by a holy affinity, and rest on our hearts as before. 
They are our treasures—loving treasures—the Sainted 
Dead. 

Let us look up joyfully. Love is eternal. When 
the light and smiles of earthly love seem to perish in 
the grave, then it is night on earth and gloomy. “ The 
setting of a great hope is like the setting of the sun. 
The brightness of our life is gone. Shadows of even¬ 
ing fall around us, and the world seems but a dim 
reflection — itself a broader shadow. We look forward 
into the coming lonely night. The soul withdraws into 


20 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


itself. Then the stars arise, and the night is holy!” 
All is yet not dark. Heaven kindles anew, across the 
sea of space, beacons of hope and promise. Though 
the flowers of love die in our hearts, they lose not their 
fragrance. The looks, the forms, the voices, the smiles 
of the dead are still with us. We feel their mysterious 
nearness. The remembrance of their kindness and 
love still teaches us to love them. 

Like the vase in which roses have once been distilled — 

You may break, you may ruin the vase if you will; 

But the scent of the roses will hang round it still! 

Their names are still to us “like ointment poured 
forth/’ the odor of which comes to us richest in our 
loneliest hours. Their image, lovely as the purest 
thoughts we can form of them, floats before our waking 
visions, and smiles upon us in the dreams of the night. 
Being themselves holy, the light of our love falling 
upon them becomes holy too. The heart gradually 
becomes like that which it loves. Purer than we are, 
our affections are purified by the power of their attrac¬ 
tions, as the sides of all objects grow bright that are 
turned towards the sun. These are our treasures — 
holy treasures — the Sainted Dead. 

Let us look up longingly. Where our treasures are, 
there let our hearts be also. The heart of the miser is 
with his gold. The eye of the merchant follows his 
freighted vessel till it disappears in the dim, distant 
blue; then looks often into the vacant air that hangs 
over the broad sea, for its return, till he sees at last its 
hopeful pennants streaming; and as it draws nearer, 


THE SAINTED DEAD. 


21 


his heart grows fuller of grateful wonderment and 
hope. Now this they do for perishable gain. Let us 
do the same, yea more, for that which perishes not. If 
earthly treasures draw the heart so strongly, ought not 
heavenly treasures more ? Yea, but our hearts are so 
gross and grovelling, and feel so little the sweet attrac¬ 
tion of the infinite and the pure. Let us long after 
them more ardently, our treasures — attractive trea¬ 
sures— the Sainted Dead. 

Let us look up lovingly. Love is stronger than all 
ills, and will crowd itself even through death. Love 
.seeks and finds its object — dies, and yet dies not, in 
the pursuit. Under its guidance, we shall find the 
objects of our affections; for it knows the homeward 
way. Come, ye living! let us sit together under the 
moaning but ever-green cypress, and commune with 
the departed. Let us drive from our hearts Caesar’s 
money-changers, and escape for a moment from the 
world’s benumbing rattle. Let us draw softly down 
into the quiet border-land along the valley of the sha¬ 
dow of death. We will listen intently. The softest 
notes that float to our ears across the almost breathless 
solitude, shall tell us hopeful tales of a better land, and 
of those who dwell in it. We will cry earnestly into 
the hollow silence which so holds the lip of death’s 
Lethean Jordan, as to allow it scarce a whisper of sor¬ 
row or joy. The earnestness of our voice will bring 
back tidings to the ear of faith. We will seek 
them, our treasures — eternal treasures — the Sainted 
Dead. 

Will we see them again ?—know them again ?—love 


22 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


them again ? — the Sainted Dead. This would we 
know? We will institute, humbly but earnestly, our 
questionings. 

As “the deepest lore is the most universal,” we will 
pass along the cool sequestered vale of common life, 
and listen to the deep longings and hopes of those who 
live and love 

“In the low huts of them that toil and groan.” 

We will ask the mysterious prophetic sighings that 
come to us out of the Pagan gloom. We will seek for 
dawnings of hope in the Jewish twilight. We will 
look for clearer light in the Gospel dawn — He who 
brought immortality to light will teach us. We will 
draw nigh to the Apostles when they speak words of 
comfort to bereaved hearts — some fragments that 
prove the existence of a loaf shall be ours. The early 
Christians, whose hearts were still warm from the 
words of inspired lips, shall make us wise by holy tra¬ 
dition. The wise of after ages, whose minds were 
clearest because*their hearts were purest, shall utter to 
us right things on this interesting subject. We will sit 
at the feet of the poets, who are “ the interpreters of 
the human heart — the expounders of its mysteries,” 
and who have an utterance given them that is denied 
to others; they will not send us empty away. 

In all these researches, we cannot fail to gather 
some rays of sacred wisdom, to shine away the sorrow 
of bereaved hearts, and much of the gloom of death. 
Voices, though feeble, and unheard by the dull ear of 
worldlings, yet comforting as sweet songs of promise, 


THE SAINTED DEAD. 


23 


shall answer to our questionings. They will whisper 
soothingly to us: You shall find them—know them — 
love them — your fadeless treasures — the Sainted 
Dead. 

Is your heart sad ? Do your lips tremble ? Are 
your eyes wet? Then read on in the next chapter. 
“Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be com¬ 
forted.” 



24 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


CHAPTER II. 


${j t MunnU] InngEitinn nmnitg $ug km. 


Who would not part with a great deal to purchase a meeting 
with Orpheus, Hesiod, Homer 1 If it be true that this is to be the 
consequence of death, I would even be glad to die often. What 
pleasure will it give to live with Palemedes and others, who suf¬ 
fered unjustly, and to compare my fate with theirs! What an 
inconceivable happiness will it be to converse, in another world, 
with Sisyphus, Ulysses, &e., especially as those who, inhabit that 
world shall die no more.”— Socrates , Apol. apud Plat. 

The ancient Germans hoped to meet their friends again, beyond 
death, in a beautiful and peaceful valley.— Ernst. 

The knowledge of a future life has always been 
common among pagan tribes and nations. That they 
should live after death was believed among them from 
the earliest time, and has been a cherished doctrine 
with them in all ages, and in all lands. No one among 
them, however, professed to have deduced the doctrine 
of the soul’s immortality from his own reasonings; 
neither did any one ever pretend to have received it by 
direct revelation from spiritual beings. They always 
speak of it as a very ancient doctrine, found among 
those golden glimmerings of sacred tradition which 
appear among all nations, in the grey twilight of their 
early history, far back as knowledge extends. 




AMONG PAGANS. 


25 


This is not strange. Life is sweet, and it is a pleas¬ 
ing hope to live after death. The knowledge of an 
eternal life, no doubt, came to them by some stray 
rays of divine revelation that found their way out from 
the tents of Israel into the surrounding gloom of pagan 
darkness. These were eagerly caught, warmly che¬ 
rished, and long retained, because they served in a 
great measure to interpret the deep and mysterious 
wants and longings of their hearts. No one can look 
into the history, literature, poetry and religion of any 
pagan nation, at any period of the world, without being 
moved to pity and sympathy at the plaintive expression 
of their earnest hopes and fears in reference to another 
life. 

What has now been said of their belief in another 
life itself, is equally true in reference to their belief in 
the mutual recognition of each other in that life, and 
the renewal and perpetuation of their earthly friend¬ 
ships and affections. It is necessary, in a full discus¬ 
sion of this subject, to take notice of this, not so much 
to ascertain what is positively true—that will be at¬ 
tended to in the proper place — as to ascertain what 
the heart, when left to its own longings, desires to be 
true. These deep, earnest voices and whispers of the 
human heart, are always prophetic. This cry of want 
is to be listened to, in order to find out the remedy 
needed. What God has provided for the saved, will 
certainly correspond with the wants of the lost before 
they are saved. These pagan ideas are voices in the 
wilderness, like that of John the Baptist, which do not 
contradict the teachings of Him who is to come, but 
really and truly proclaim what is to come. The “ ear- 
3 


26 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


nest expectation of the creature” will not be disap¬ 
pointed. It is true, in a deep and comprehensive sense, 
that “hope maketh not ashamed.” Hope presupposes 
a sense of want; hope is the reaching forth of the heart 
after that which will satisfy its wants. What these 
wants by an inward necessity reach after, must and 
does exist. This sense of want exists for the very rea¬ 
son that thereby their hearts may he urged on to seek 
that which will satisfy them. In this sense we are 
“ saved by hope.” This sense of want teaches us that 
what will satisfy them exists, though it be out of sight; 
and hence it is that the object of hope must, in the 
nature of things, he unseen. “ Hope that is seen is 
not hope; for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope 
for ? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we 
with patience wait for it.” 

We introduce this chapter on the doctrine of future 
recognition among pagans, not only to exhibit the deep 
desire they manifested that it might he true, and thus 
to show that a want exists in the human spirit which 
calls for it; hut also to preserve, through the whole 
discussion, the unbroken thread of its history. It 
must he granted, by all who earnestly think, that no 
doctrine can he correctly and clearly treated, or rightly 
understood and appreciated, except in the light and 
connection of its past history. Any event or doctrine 
suddenly sprung upon us, rather confounds than in¬ 
structs us. Our intellectual and moral nature always 
starts with a kind of suspicious surprise at that which 
is new. Only that which is light and frivolous at once 
falls in with the latest; the deep and thoughtful re¬ 
gards the past. A doctrine, like a prophet, has not 


AMONG PAGANS. 


27 


the same honor, at the time when it arises, which it has 
afterwards; age is necessary to give it the authority 
of wisdom. We cannot possibly so well know an indi¬ 
vidual who is suddenly introduced to us in mature age, 
even though his character be delineated to us, as we do 
know the same person, if we have known him ourselves 
in all his acts from childhood. In like manner, we 
cannot have so correct an idea of a doctrine which is 
abruptly introduced to us and abstractly discussed, as 
we will have of the same doctrine when we trace it, 
from its early and feeble dawnings, through all the 
phases of its historical evolutions. Ideas, like the 
fragments of a broken body, may be arranged in their 
proper and consistent order; but they will have nei¬ 
ther life nor beauty unless they have grown together 
—this requires time—history. We desire, therefore, to 
exhibit this interesting doctrine in its early dawnings 
and prophetic glimmerings, as well as in its full and 
perfect glory. 

Homer, the great ancient Grecian poet, who lived 
and wrote about nine hundred years before Christ, 

“The blind old man of Scio’s rocky isle,” 

as the voice of his age, speaks frequently — sometimes 
direct, and sometimes incidentally — of the state of the 
dead. The sentiments he expresses are those of the 
age in which he lived, as they floated around him in 
mystic and sacred tradition. He does but define, and 
utter more clearly than they could have done, what all 
believed. According to his representations, the shades 
of the dead retain all the characteristics, dispositions, 


28 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


habits, stations, and peculiarities, which belonged to 
them before death.* There, in the shadowy land of 
disembodied spirits, dead heroes meet each other and 
hold conversations, retaining their earthly distinctive 
characters. There his hero is 

-Still a master-ghost; the rest he awed; 

The rest adored him; towering as he trod; 

Still at his side is Nestor’s son surveyed, 

And loved Patroclus still attends his shade. 

Odyssey , Book XXIV., line 25. 

In the eleventh book of the Odyssey, Homer represents 
Ulysses as visiting the shades of the dead. There he 
meets many whom he knew on earth. There, “ wan¬ 
dering through the gloom,” he discovered “Elpener’s 
shade,” and also that of Tiressias, with both of which 
he holds conversation; the latter informs him, in pro¬ 
phetic strains, of his coming fortunes. He meets also 
the shades of ancient heroes and heroines; among 
them particularly Ajax, “a gloomy shade;” also Pa¬ 
troclus and Achilles, whom he finds in company with 
each other, having always been friends in life. With 
Achilles he speaks of the affairs of earth, who, in the 
course of the conversation, institutes a comparison be¬ 
tween life on earth and life in the shades; and wishes 
to know whether his son, still upon the earth, strives 
to “ emulate his father’s godlike deeds.” 

He meets also his mother ! It is an affecting scene ! 
He hastes to embrace her, but she vanishes as a dream 
from before him — he being still in the flesh — while he 
exclaims, in true tenderness and affection: 


* Vide Odyssey, Book II., line 48, &c. 



AMONG PAGANS. 


29 


# Fliest thou, loved shade, while I thus fondly mourn! 
Turn to my arms, to my embraces turn! 

Is it, ye powers that smile at human harms, 

Too great a bliss to weep within her arms! 

Thus, through the whole of this book, life among the 
departed is just like life upon earth, as to its social 
features; it has the same warm and sensible accompa¬ 
niments as it has here, and looks just as home-like and 
natural to us. They meet, know, address, love, and 
hate one another, just as they did upon the earth. 

Socrates, who flourished about four hundred years 
before Christ, had many celebrated disciples, among 
whom was the great Plato; his sentiments may there¬ 
fore be fairly taken as the sentiments of his age, and 
the age immediately succeeding him. In judging of 
the views of Socrates, and other philosophers of that 
time, it is necessary to keep in mind, that, as the doc¬ 
trine of another life itself was not so clearly and fully 
known as to enable their earnest minds to repose calmly 
upon it, so it was also with their ideas of the future 
recognition of friends. It was, with them, like the 
doctrine of another life itself, a tradition pleasant, 
ancient, and venerable, which accorded with the wants 
and wishes of their hearts, rather than a doctrine rest¬ 
ing upon a logical basis to satisfy the mind. Hence 
they speak of it in the varying language of human 
feeling; at times confidently, and at times with the 
waverings of painful uncertainty. 

In the beginning of the Phasdon, Socrates says to 
those who came to see him in prospect of death, when 
he was about to place the fatal hemlock to his lips, 
that it would be wrong in him not to be troubled at the 
3 * 


30 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


idea of dying, “ did he not think that he should go to. 
wise and just gods, and to men that had departed this 
life.” “But know assuredly,” he adds, “that I hope 
I am now going to good men, though this I would not 
take upon me peremptorily to assert.” 

This dark and trembling uncertainty in the mind of 
this dying philosopher is caused by a temporary failing 
of his faith in the ancient tradition, at this trying hour. 
There is for a moment a rising of his fears above his 
faith. For this very reason, however, the testimony 
of this earnest spirit bears more strongly on this sub¬ 
ject. It shows that it is not the wind of Socrates 
which speaks its cold logic, but it is his heart that 
deeply utters its hopes and fears. It is not so much 
his views as his feelings, which he expresses — yea 
rather, not his feelings, but the feelings of the whole 
heathen mind, as they had gathered strength more and 
more from remote and hoary ages, and at length 
uttered themselves in trembling but earnest prophecy 
from the heart and lips of dying Socrates. Such a 
voice from the burdened bosom of pagan wants and 
woes, has deep significance. Its very tremblings are 
an evidence of its aged, hoary, and sage-like authority. 
The pagan heart, pressed thus to the solemn verge of 
mortal hopes and fears, shall it not feel a want, and 
have a right to express it, too ? Yes; and this want 
will not be one that is not real, for the satisfaction of 
which the very constitution of human nature does not 
rightfully ask, and for which God has not fully pro¬ 
vided, if this provision is sought after in the true way. 
Fallen human nature utters not a single groan for 
which there is not a remedy. It is fully true that 


AMONG PAGANS. 


31 


“Earth hath no sorrow that heaven cannot heal.” 

The very existence of this sense of want in the pagan 
heart is, therefore, a true prophecy that Christianity 
will satisfy it. This “ earnest expectation of the crea¬ 
ture” points towards a blessed hope, to which all the 
heirs of life will surely attain — the future finding 
again of all their sainted friends. 

When the heart of Socrates was most humble and 
tender, and when his own wisdom was most under the 
powerful influence of simple faith in the ancient tradi¬ 
tion, then he spake with more confidence, and in a 
firmer and more hopeful tone. This is the case in the 
following passage. Though it commences with a trem¬ 
bling and fearful “if,” yet it soon warms up, and rises 
into the joyful assurance of a calm faith. “If the 
common expression be true, that death conveys us to 
those regions which are inhabited by the spirits of de¬ 
parted men, will it not be unspeakably happy to escape 
from the hands of mere nominal judges, to appear be¬ 
fore those who truly deserve the name, such as Minos 
and Rhadamanthus, and to associate with all who have 
maintained the cause of truth and rectitude ? Is it 
possible for you to look upon this as an unimportant 
journey ? Is it nothing to converse with Orpheus, and 
Homer, and Hesiod ? Believe me, I would cheerfully 
suffer many a death on the condition of realizing such 
a privilege. With what pleasure could I leave the 
world to hold communion with Palemedes, Ajax, and 
others, who, like me, have had an unjust sentence pro¬ 
nounced against them ? Then would I explore the 
wisdom of Ulysses, Sisyphus, and that illustrious chief 
who led out the vast forces of the Grecian army against 


32 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


the city of Troy. Nor should I he condemned to death 
for indulging, as I have done here, in free inquiry.” 

Thus spake Socrates to his judges and friends, 
shortly after he had been sentenced to drink the poi¬ 
sonous hemlock, which ended his mortal career. Though 
the gloomy “if” troubled him, yet it is plain to see* 
that the hope of meeting the great and good of earth 
in the future life was stronger than his fears, and shed 
a soul-cheering light upon his dying hour. 

We are told that many of the lower orders among 
the ancients committed suicide, in the fit of sorrow 
caused by the death of friends, in order the sooner to 
he with them again upon immortal shores. Socrates 
refers to this fact. “Are there not numbers,” says he, 

“ who, upon the death of their lovers, wives, and chil¬ 
dren, have chosen of their own accord to enter Hades, 
induced by the hope of seeing there those they loved, 
and of living with them again?” 

The custom which has long prevailed, and which still 
prevails among the Hindoos, and in India generally, 
of widows burning themselves on the funeral pyre of 
their beloved husbands, can only be explained on the 
principle that they expected to follow them into the 
future life. “ She would hasten to the society of him 
she loves — she would meet him in the spacious halls 
of Brahma, to spend happier days than were ever real¬ 
ized on earth.” 

In like manner w T e must interpret the custom of 
sacrificing human victims at the death of a chief, which 
has prevailed among some pagans from ancient times, 
and is common among the tribes of India. These are 
expected to attend him, as one they were wont to obey, 


AMONG PAGANS. 


33 


defend, and honor. This custom, and the intention of 
it, are hinted at by Homer in his Iliad, Book XXIII., 
line 211, where Achilles is said to sacrifice four horses, 
two dogs, and twelve human beings, in connection with 
the funeral honors of Patroclus, “ selected to attend 
their lord.” 

Four sprightly coursers, with a deadly groan, 

Pour forth their lives, and on the pyre are thrown; 

Of nine large dogs, domestic at his board, 

Fall two, selected to attend their lord; 

When last of all, and horrible x to tell, 

Sad sacrifice! twelve Trojan captives fell! 

This custom plainly points out their belief in the con¬ 
tinuation of earthly relations and attachments beyond 
the grave. 

It is said that it was customary among the Indian 
Gymnosophists, or barefooted philosophers, to send 
messages to their departed friends with such as made 
known their intention of committing suicide. Porphyry 
says of them: — “They endure the term of life with 
reluctance, as a necessary ministry to nature, and 
hasten to get their souls at liberty from their bodies; 
and when they appear to be in health, and have no 
evil upon them to urge them to it, they freely depart 
out of this life, telling others beforehand of their in¬ 
tention, who, far from hindering them, account them 
happy, and give them commissions to their deceased 
friends .” 

Dr. Leland, in his excellent work on the Necessity 
of Divine Revelation, says: “In many parts of the 
world, where they held a life after this, the notion they 


34 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


had of it seems to have been, that it shall be a life 
perfectly like the present, with the same bodily wants, 
the same exercises and employments, and the same 
enjoyments and pleasures, which they had here. Hence 
it was that among some nations it was customary for 
the women, the slaves, the subjects and friends of the 
deceased, to kill themselves, that in the other world 
they might serve those whom they loved and respected 
in this. Such was the practice among the ancient 
Danes, as Bartholimus informs us in his Danish Anti¬ 
quities.” 

These are examples of the strength of human affec¬ 
tion, even where it is not under the influence of our 
holy religion. How lovely is this stability of earthly 
feeling, and how ardently does it hope to be eternal! 
Who will say that God has planted in the human heart 
this principle of disinterested affection, the fruits of 
which are even in this life so beautiful and pleasant, 
only to end in death ! 

We have now found and exhibited this doctrine of 
future recognition among the philosophers and poets 
of refined and learned Greece, and also among the less 
cultivated nations and races in the outer gloom of the 
pagan world; let us now seek it among the polite and 
polished Romans. — Cicero, the great Roman orator, 
who flourished about one hundred years before Christ, 
has left us his sentiments on this subject in a very ten¬ 
der and touching passage. “ For my own part, I feel 
myself transported with the most ardent impatience to 
join the society of my two departed friends, your illus¬ 
trious fathers, whose characters I greatly respected, 
and whose persons I sincerely loved. Nor is this my 


AMONG PAGANS. 


35 


earnest desire confined to those excellent persons alone 
with whom I was formerly connected: I ardently wish 
to visit also those celebrated worthies, of whose honor¬ 
able conduct I have heard and read much, or whose 
virtues I have myself commemorated in some of my 
writings. To this glorious assembly I am speedily ad¬ 
vancing ; and I would not be turned back in my jour¬ 
ney, even on the assured condition that my youth, like 
that of Pelias, should be again restored. 

“ 0 glorious day! when I shall retire from this low 
and sordid scene, to associate with the divine assembly 
of departed spirits; and not with those only whom I 
have just now mentioned, but with my dear Cato, that 
best of sons and most valuable of men ! It was my 
sad fate to lay his body on the funeral pile, when by 
the course of nature I had reason to hope he would 
have performed the same last office to mine. His soul, 
however, did not desert me, but still looked back on me 
in its flight to those happy mansions, to which he was 
assured I should one day follow him. If I seemed to 
bear his death with fortitude, it was by no means that 
I did not most sensibly feel the loss I had sustained: 
it was because I supported myself with the consoling 
reflection that we could not long be separated. ” 

With what an affecting simplicity are these words 
spoken ! How wonderfully sweet is their consoling 
influence; and how are we surprised that they are the 
product of a pagan mind, and the expression of a pagan 
heart! How does the gloom of death vanish, even in 
this pagan mind, before the blessed hope of reunion in 
a better life! 

Yirgil, the plaintive bard of Mantua, lived and 


86 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


wrote about fifty years before Christ. In his iEneid, 
he makes frequent allusion to the state of the dead. 
In the sixth book, he represents the Sibyl as conduct¬ 
ing iEneas through the shades below. As he passed 
along among them, 

He saw his friends, who, whelm’d beneath the waves, 

Their funeral honors claimed, and asked their quiet graves. 
The lost Leneaspis in the crowd he knew, 

Whom, on the Tyrrhene seas, the tempests met, 

The sailors mastered and the ships o’erset. 

Amid the spirits Palinurus pressed, 

Yet fresh from life, a new-admitted guest, 

Who, while he steering viewed the stars, and bore 
His course from Afric to the Latian shore, 

Fell headlong down. The Trojan fixed his view, 

And scarcely through the gloom the sullen shadow knew. 

He saw also others, whom he bad known on earth. 
Passing on, he came to the “ mournful fieldsa place 
so called because it is the sequestered and quiet abode 
of those who were crossed in love, and who had pined 
away and died under the blight of unrequited affection. 

Procris, Eriphyle here he found, 

Baring her breast, yet bleeding with the wound 
Made by her son. 

In all his representations, he speaks of those whom he 
meets in the shades after their station and manner of 
life here upon earth. Even the kind of death they 
died is often alluded to. Dido is not only^addressed as 
a queen, but is also pictured as standing before him, 

“Fresh from her wounds, her bosom bathed in blood.” 


AMONG PAGANS. 


37 


In like manner, Deiphobus, the son of Priam, is seen 
covered with his w r ounds, and despoiled of his limbs. 

The following quotation affords a fine specimen of 
the ready manner in which he recognized his friends, 
and how similar their intercourse was to what they had 
been accustomed to in this world: 

He, with his guide, the farther fields attained, 

Where, severed from the rest, the warrior souls remained. 
Fidens he met, with Meleager’s race, 

The pride of armies, and the soldier’s grace; 

And pale Adrastus, with his ghastly face. 

Of Trojan chiefs he viewed a numerous train, 

All much lamented, all in battle slain — 

Glaucus and Medon, high above the rest, 

Antenor’s sons, and Ceres’ sacred priest, 

And proud Idaeus, Priam’s charioteer, 

Who shakes his empty reins, and aims his airy spear. 

The gladsome ghosts in circling troops attend, 

And with unwearied eyes behold their friend; 

Delight to hover near, and long to know 
What business brought him to the realms below. 

Virgil also represents immediate recognition as taking 
place with equal ease in the highest heaven, as in the 
lower and more sombre Hades. Passing on through 
gloomy and cheerless shades, the region of those who 
are only partially blest, they enter at length the “ ver¬ 
dant fields” of the higher and happier regions. Here, 
too, he recognizes those he knew upon the earth. 

Here found they Teucer’s old heroic race, 

Born better times, and happier years of grace. 

Assaracus and IIus here enjoy 

Perpetual fame, with him who founded Troy. 

4 


38 THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 

Still he is not satisfied. There are ties of kindred, too, 
and he feels himself pressed in heart to seek his rela¬ 
tives. He longs especially to see his father Anchises! 
The Sibyl makes inquiry of sacred priests and poets 
for the venerable hero. Kindly directed by these, 
they go through “ blissful meadows,” and find him at 
last in a flowery vale, viewing, -with a kind of holy 
pride, his race of illustrious descendants, as they pass 
in review before him. At once old Anchises discovers 
his son ! The scene is tender and moving ! The sire 
sees JEneas coming, and 

Meets him with open arms and falling tears. 

“Welcome,” he said, “the gods’ undoubted race! 

O long-expected to my dear embrace!” 

This rapture of meeting is warmly and affectionately 
reciprocated by the son. Is it not exactly what we 
feel to be natural, when, after a long separation, we 
meet our friends in realms of bliss ? iEneas exclaims 
with holy joy, 

Reach forth your hand, oh parent shade! nor shun 

The dear embraces of your loving son! 

He said: and falling tears his face bedew: 

Then thrice around his neck his arms he threw! 

Such were the views of this Roman poet concerning 
the life after death. Thus did he cheer and comfort 
his own heart, and the hearts of those for whom he 
sang, in the dark hour of bereavement and sorrow. 
They endured the short separation from their friends 
in the patience of hope. They suffered not death to 
break the ties which joined them to their friends. They 


AMONG PAGANS. 


39 


loved the dead even as the living; yea, sometimes 
more — even to deification. They cherished their me¬ 
mories, praised their virtues, forgot their failings, and 
waited in the lonely longings of warm affection to meet 
them again in the vale of Tempe, in the Hesperian 
Gardens, the Elysian Fields, or in the peaceful Islands 
of the blest, in far-off and quiet seas. 

Among modern pagans, this precious and consoling 
belief in the future recognition of friends is still held 
and cherished. The ills of life, the pangs of death, 
and the long, leaden hours of separation, are still soft¬ 
ened among them by the blessed hope of reunion in a 
world where they die no more. The custom to which 
we have already alluded as existing among ancient 
pagans, of women, slaves, subjects and friends, killing 
themselves, that they might follow those to whom they 
were attached in life, still prevails; and it points 
plainly to the fact, that the belief in future recognition 
and eternal friendships has a deep hold upon their 
minds and hearts. This practice continues, according 
to Dr. Leland, to this day, “ in Japan, Macassar, and 
other places. It is said to be a custom in Guinea, that 
when a king dies many are slain, and their bloody car¬ 
cases buried with him, that they may again live with 
him in another world. It was formerly a well-known 
custom in the East Indies for women to kill themselves 
after the death of their husbands, that they might ac¬ 
company them in the next life. And so lately as the 
year 1710, when the prince of Morava, on the coast 
of Coromandel, died, aged above eighty years, his 
wives, to the number of forty-seven, were burned with 
his corpse. We are told also that in Terra Firma, in 


40 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


America, it was customary, when one of their caciques 
died, for his chief servants, men and women, to kill them¬ 
selves, to serve him in the other world; and they buried 
with them maize and other provisions for their subsist¬ 
ence. And it is said concerning the disciples of Foe in 
China, that some of them, when they meet with obstacles 
to their passions (affections), go together to hang or drown 
themselves, that, when they rise together again, they 
may become husband and wife.” True, this is ill-di¬ 
rected affection ; and it is because it is not enlightened 
and sanctified by the light and spirit of a true revela¬ 
tion, that it leads to such sad results; but surely the 
strength and sincerity of it cannot be better shown 
than it is in this willingness to die that its possessors 
may follow the object they love and adore. 

This precious faith in future recognition also mani¬ 
fests itself among modern pagans in other and lovelier 
forms. “ Travellers tell us that the Brazilians also 
console themselves on the death of their friends by 
the hope of being united again to them, and are accus¬ 
tomed to express, in their lamentations, the confident 
expectation of seeing them in the unknown regions 
beyond the mountains which skirt their horizon, to 
renew the accustomed pleasures of the chase, the 
dance, and the song. So also the poor Indian of our 
western wilds stretches forth his hands with joy towards 
the world beyond his blue mountains, where he antici¬ 
pates the renewal of his existence in the society of 
kindred and contemporary chieftains, and where he 
expects that even 


His faithful dog shall bear him company. 1 


AMONG PAGANS. 


41 


So when the wretched sons of Ham are torn, by mon¬ 
sters in human shape, from their home and kindred, 
and sold to masters in distant lands, what is their com¬ 
fort, while memory, reverting to the scenes of youth, 
brings the tear of sorrow down their sable cheeks, but 
the cherished belief that after death will be formed 
anew those social bonds which infernal cruelty had 
dared to sever ? This revives their spirit, and sweetens 
their bitter cup of life. They hope to meet their loved 
ones again in unmolested realms of happiness, where 

No fiends torment, nor Christians thirst for gold. 

This, when far from home, is their song of rapture — 
this is the theme of their consolation, as they sit by 
the waters of captivity and weep.” 

’Tis but to die, and then to weep no more, 

Then will he wake on Congo’s distant shore; 

Beneath his plantain’s ancient shade renew 
The simple transports that with freedom flew; 

Catch the cool breeze that musky evening blows, 

And quaff the palm’s rich nectar as it flows; 

The oral tale of elder times rehearse, 

And chant the rude traditionary verse, 

With those, the loved companions of his youth, 

When life was luxury, and friendship truth. 

Such is the sighing of the pagan heart. So heave 
the heavy, wo-pressed bosoms of those whose infinite 
longings have not yet seen the star of the Christian’s 
hopes arise in the dark firmament which overhangs the 
shades of moral death. Such is the “ earnest expecta¬ 
tion of the creature” stumbling in painful yet hopeful 
4 * 


42 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


uncertainty in the way of its desires and wants. There 
is to us something sweetly interesting and instructive 
in these ideas of a future life, and the mutual recogni¬ 
tion of friends in that life, as found among the thick 
gloom of paganism. It is, as already hinted, a pro¬ 
phecy of the truth. Just as sacrifices, which are every 
where resorted to in pagan religion to reconcile men 
with gods, proclaim the necessity of that sacrifice 
which Christianity reveals as an atonement for sin, so 
do those hopes and longings after reunion with depart¬ 
ed friends prophetically proclaim that God will gra¬ 
ciously provide for the full satisfaction of this want in 
the future inheritance of the saints. 

It makes us feel happy also to think how precious 
must have been the drop of consolation, which this 
faith in future recognition afforded to those among 
them who sorrowed after departed friends. How mer¬ 
ciful is God even to human infirmities; and how true 
is it that his tender mercies are over all his works in 
all places of His dominion! He pities even the poor 
benighted pagan, and, although he gives the children 
bread, he denies not to them the crumbs which fall 
from the table. How many tears did this faith wipe 
away ! how many sad and forlorn spirits did it calm 
and cheer! and what a hopeful vista did it open to be¬ 
reaved and bleeding hearts beyond the otherwise cheer¬ 
less grave! Let us bless God for every drop of con¬ 
solation which this doctrine has afforded to poor sor¬ 
rowing heathen in the hour of fresh bereavements. 

Then, too, these views are creditable to human 
friendship, even where it is only human. Glad are 
we, in this fallen world, amid the disorganizing and 


AMONG PAGANS. 


43 


dividing influences of sin, to see hearts thus clinging 
to each other through life, and refusing even to be 
hopelessly sundered in death. These tendrils of living 
affection are like flowery vines that grow over doleful 
ruins to hide their hideousness, and to make the world 
more beautiful. Oh ! why should not this be prophetic 
of the final and eternal renovation of our social life in 
heaven, where the ruins of the fall shall be restored, 
and where all that sin has divided shall be brought to¬ 
gether again into the joyful embraces of holy love. We 
find it hard to consider a doctrine so full of consola¬ 
tion, and so creditable to true friendship, as only 

“ The herald of a lie.” 

We find it hard to believe that this agreeable hope, 
which rises like a May sun over the World of social 
life, cheering and warming and making it beautiful, 
and which often sets in richest glory, shall be finally 
and for ever lost in night. No — it will surely rise 
again in new beauty, when the eternal morning shall 
dawn upon the grave; holy affections, as well as glo¬ 
rious bodies, shall come forth from the tomb; suspend¬ 
ed ties of affection, which, like plants whose life retired 
during winter into the bosom of the earth, will revive 
in vernal loveliness, and bloom on in an eternal spring. 

In this connection, it occurs to me that there are 
sceptics in the world in these last days ! Sceptics, who 
profess to regard with cold and stoic indifference all 
hopes and fears in reference to a future life. They 
boast of following the dictates of nature, reason, and 
the intuitive motions of an inward sense. Here, in 
these pagan ideas, is nature uttering its desires, its 


44 


THE HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


hopes, its wants, its fears — here is a voice from the 
deeps of burdened hearts, strong as humanity, under 
the pressure of infinite wants, can utter; and what 
does it proclaim, but the truth so plainly revealed in 
God’s word, that the infinite longings of the human 
heart can find no full satisfaction on this side of an 
immortal life! This solemn and important truth the 
heart of every modern sceptic would still utter, did he 
not drown the voice of his own higher nature in the 
revilings and riotings, in the stupidity and slumbers, 
of earthliness and sin! Who would not be ashamed 
of his infidelity, when reproved by the earnest but 
groping heathen ? Another life — and a better one — 
all nature proclaims. Another life — and a better one 
— is uttered from the constitution of our nature in the 
restlessness of its infinite desires. Another life — and 
a better one — God promises to all who will seek it by 
faith in Christ, who brought immortality to light. 
There, and there alone, are enduring treasures; there 
alone are joys that end not — there is life without ills, 
and affections that never die. 

We pity the poor bewildered pagans ; and it is right 
that we should; but let us not so misuse our superior 
mercies, as to give them just cause to rise up in judg¬ 
ment to condemn us. We enjoy superior light — let 
us love and use it. Let us not disgrace our faith by 
sorrowing for our dead even more than those who have 
no hope. Let our faith and hope in another life be 
stronger than theirs — let our affections towards our 
friends be holier while they are with us — let our sor-* 
rows after them be more chastened and submissive 
when they are taken away — let our desires after them, 


AMONG PAGANS. 


45 


and the blessed inheritance upon which they have en¬ 
tered, be like a holy cord in our hearts to draw us away 
from the low delights of earth and sin — and let our 
gratitude to God be ardent and endless as his goodness 
is to us. 

If we have tears to weep, let it be for the wretched 
on earth, and not for those who rest from their toils 
and woes. Weep for the dead who are dead in sin, not 
for the living who are alive and blest in heaven. And 
you, who have never been made alive in Christ Jesus, 
weep for yourselves. Go not to the tomb where the 
ashes of buried love repose — where a kindred saint 
sleeps in Jesus as in a downy bed—but go to the cross, 
and weep tears of penitence over your sins, till Jesus 
wipes them away. 

Oh, weep not for the dead! 

Rather, oh! rather give the tear 
To those that darkly linger here, 

When all besides are fled. 

Weep for the spirit withering 
In its cold, cheerless sorrowing; 

Weep for the young and lovely one, 

That ruin darkly revels on; 

But never be a tear-drop shed 

For them, the pure enfranchised dead! 


46 


HEAVENLY KECOGNITION 


CHAPTER III. 


Unnu It} Inngnitinn it fynhuznl fotlhl 
$Dp? ; unit Smn. 


I call’d on dreams and visions to disclose 
That which is veiled from waking thoughts; conjured 
Eternity as men constrain a ghost 
T’ appear and answer; to the grave I spake 
Imploringly;—looked up, and asked the heavens 
If angels traversed their cerulean floors, 

If fixed or wandering star could tidings yield 
Of the departed spirit — what abode 
It occupies — what consciousness retains 
Of former loves and interests. 

Wordsworth , Ex. Bk. III. 

That the saints in light shall again recognize and 
know each other, and renew the acquaintances and 
friendships formed on the earth, is a universal belief, 
hope and desire. Some, it is true, have affected to 
doubt it, and even to pretend that it is not desirable 
that it should be true; but not, we think, earnestly, 
and with a sincere and humble zeal for the truth. Any 
doubts which have existed in regard to this point, have, 
we are inclined to suppose, been the result of affecta¬ 
tion ; or, to attribute to such doubters the most chari¬ 
table motives, they have been entertained under the 




A UNIVERSAL BELIEF. 


47 


influence of mere negative considerations. If, there¬ 
fore, there are a few affected doubters, they are the 
exception, and not the rule; and we are not hindered 
in considering the desire after, and the belief in, future 
recognition as a universal sentiment. 

A few remarks on this subject will convince any one 
of ordinary reflection, observation, and experience, 
that the hope and desire of finding again in heaven 
those loved and lost on earth, is strictly universal. We 
have seen how pagans have viewed it; we shall find it 
equally general in Christian lands. Not only do we 
find allusions to this doctrine, taking its truth for 
granted, among learned philosophers and theologians; 
but we hear of it, in like manner, among the quiet 
orders of common and humble life. There is not a 
country grave-yard, where some monumental stone does 
not record it, and where this hopeful thought does not 
prompt the rising sigh in the bosom of bereaved and 
sorrowing hearts, and where this sigh is not again 
calmed by a rising faith in this doctrine. There is 
scarcely a funeral discourse pronounced at the grave 
of the pious, in which it is not referred to in tones of 
sweet consolation. There is scarcely a funeral hymn 
in which it is not mentioned, referred to, or taken for 
granted. There is scarcely a death-bed around which 
it does not linger, like the mellow notes of a long-loved 
song, either on the lips of the dying, or from sympa¬ 
thizing friends who crowd affectionately around, to hand 
the departing one softly down into the Lethean stream. 
— Immediately after writing the last sentence, I was 
called, as pastor, to visit a young Sabbath-school scho¬ 
lar on her death-bed. She was about twelve years'old, 


48 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


and had been much afflicted. She requested me to 
sing. I asked her what hymn she loved, promising to 
sing it. Having a few minutes before risen from my 
meditations on this subject, to call on her, it was a 
little remarkable to me that, in reply to my question, 
What hymn she loved ? she repeated, with feeble voice 
and trembling lips, part of the following: 

In this dark world of sin and pain, 

We only meet to part again; 

But when we reach the heavenly shore, 

We then shall meet to part no more. 

The hope that we shall see that day, 

Should chase our present griefs away; 

When these few years of pain are past, 

We’ll meet around the throne at last. 

Thus, with the solemn and affectionate farewells of 
the pious, this faith mingles its words of hope and 
promise: “ if we meet no more on earth, we will meet 
in heaven.” This doctrine, also, generally closes the 
heart-indited letter to the absent, and is the wing of 
every sigh that follows them into lands distant and 
unknown. 

The common feeling on this subject is beautifully 
expressed in a happy allusion to this doctrine by the 
late pious Dr. Nevins, in his Practical Thoughts, which 
will serve as a specimen of numberless others of a 
similar kind, abounding in biographies, obituaries, 
liturgies, letters, and consolatory writings. “ True, 
death separates; but it unites , also. It takes us, I 
know, from many we love; but it takes us to as many 
we love.” More than half of some families have gone 


A UNIVERSAL BELIEF. 


49 


already to heaven; why should we be so much more 
desirous of continuing with that part on earth, than 
of joining that portion which is in heaven ? 

So general is this belief, that it is confined to no age 
of the world, but is found in all ages. It is confined 
to no place, but is found in all places. It is peculiar 
to no denomination of Christians, and to no tribe, na¬ 
tion, or religion of pagans; but is found among all. 
The learned also have it even as the ignorant, and che¬ 
rish it with the same implicit tenderness and affection. 
Like the partings and bereavements which call it forth, 
it i3 extensive as our death-doomed and dying race. 
“ It is the voice of nature, proclaiming in loud and 
joyous accents the destiny of her virtuous children.” 

Not only is this a common and general faith, but it 
is associated also with a warm and animated desire. It 
is not a cold and dead notion by which this doctrine is 
held; but it is a faith that lives, and longs ardently for 
its realization. All most devoutly desire it to be true, 
and daily live on its happy and consoling promises. 
The bare thought that it might not be true is dread¬ 
fully distressing, and every passing doubt of its truth 
brings a moment’s misery into the heart where it finds 
entrance. 

The general existence, then, of this faith, and the 
general desire that it maybe true, are undoubted. Now 
the question arises, How does this furnish any evidence 
that it is true ? We will answer. 

Where is there an universal idea that is not true ? 
Where are there universal hopes or fears that are 
groundless ? Where is there an idea that is common 
to heathen, Mahomedan, Jew, and Christian—common 


50 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


to all sects and divisions of religionists — common to 
high and low, learned and ignorant — common also to 
all lands and all ages—where is there such a universal 
idea of any kind, that is not founded in truth ? There 
is none. Error alone is sectional — the catholic and 
universal is true. Humanity does not lie. Any want 
which it expresses is a true want. Any hope which it 
cherishes in its broad and universal bosom, is a hope 
that may be realized by all such as can find the path; 
and any fear which.it feels and expresses, is no ground¬ 
less fear. The heathen motto “ vox populi, vox Dei,” 
is not true, indeed, according to the sense attached to 
it by those who used it; but it is true in the deeper 
sense above explained. “ The deepest lore is the most 
universal.” The loudest and strongest testimony to 
truth, next to the voice from heaven, is that which 
heaves up mightily from the broad bosom of humanity, 
like the voice of one lost in a wilderness, plaintive and 
tremulous — the lips of the sage always tremble and 
utter feebly — but hopeful still. When heaven speaks, 
earth returns the echo; and if we hear but the echo, 
we know what the voice spake, though it be less dis¬ 
tinctly. The reflected heavens in the waters of earth, 
preach of the heavens that are over them; and the 
stars that shine reflected out of their tossed and rest¬ 
less waves, would not be there if they were not first in 
the tranquil heavens above. So, what we hear sound¬ 
ing forth in a universal voice from the whole race of 
man, has been spoken to them from heaven, though in 
a voice so still, that only those who hold their breath 
in quiet hear it. There be prophets in our inner life, 
as well as in our outer world! 


A UNIVERSAL BELIEF. 


51 


That these universal ideas are often faint, flickering, 
and unsteady, is not owing to the serene and unclouded 
firmament of truth in which they have their source and 
home, but to the restless medium through w T hich they 
pass, and the tarnished surface in man’s darkened mind 
from which they are reflected. Though tossed and 
wandering, it is still truth, 

As sunshine broken in a rill, 

Though turned astray, is sunshine still! 

That all universal ideas are true, not indeed always 
in their form, but in their substance, may be farther 
established and illustrated by reference to several such. 
The belief in the existence of a God, for instance, is 
common to all men. There are no human beings to be 
found, however rude or polite, w 7 ho do not hope or fear 
it. Some nations, it is true, have lost His unity, and 
represent Him in broken fragments; some have very 
wrong, and many more, very imperfect ideas of Him ; 
but of the existence of some Sovereign Power over 
them, none doubt — but fools! Ps. xiv. 1. With all, 
the idea of God’s existence is not so much a deduction 
of reason, as a spontaneous feeling or consciousness. 
It is the light and life of God’s reflected image in man. 
He “ glasses Himself” in man’s spirit. Pie speaks 
forth his own existence from out the consciousness of 
all men whom he has made. He looks forth from his 
own image in man, in feeble, mellow, but yet in true 
manifestation. The distortions into which this truth has 
fallen, do not invalidate its verity — though they may 
obscure it—any more than fragments disprove a whole 


52 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


from which they are broken. The many gods of the 
heathen are fragments of the one true God — they 
prove His existence. Here, then, is an undoubted 
instance of the truth of an universal idea. 

Alike universal, though fragmentary, is the doctrine 
of immortality. All men, unless they are spoiled by 
a vain philosophy, believe in a future state. This is 
generally received, and properly too, as a proof that 
there is another life. If the belief in an immortal 
state were a deduction of reason, it would never have 
been universal — for where is there a truth that can 
only be reached by reason, which is universal? — but 
being the result of human spontaneiety, it is broad as 
humanity itself. This corresponds exactly with the 
facts as furnished by the history of this doctrine. It 
was not received by those who held it through reason; 
but it came to them by tradition from the morning twi¬ 
light of time. The fact is, reasoning on it led them 
away from it into doubts and fears. The more human 
reason was developed in the minds of pagan philoso¬ 
phers, and the more it sought to take this doctrine ex¬ 
clusively under its care, for the purpose of placing it on 
solid ground, the more was it lost to them in doubt and 
despair. The universal tradition, as it lived hopefully 
in the hearts and in the simple faith of the common 
people, was stronger and less disturbed than it was in 
the minds of those who sought to unfold, establish, and 
beautify it, in the light of reason. It is a fact which 
strikingly confirms what has now been said, that the 
doctrine of the soul’s immortality was never more 
doubted than in the politest ages and circles of Grecian 
cultivation. Even Plato and Socrates, in their last 


A UNIVERSAL BELIEF. 


58 


hours, refreshed their fainting faith in it, not by call¬ 
ing to mind their own reasonings on the subject, but 
from the far-back fountains of sacred tradition. “ They 
say it is true,” was a stronger voice of consolation to 
them, than “I have reasoned that it is true.” 

In regard, then, to both these doctrines — viz., the 
existence of God, and the soul’s immortality—it is the 
universal voice, which forms the firmest basis, out of 
the Bible, for the soul’s repose in them. Humanity is 
no lie, exclaims the earnest, truth-seeking spirit; and 
its voice, where it gives but one sound, speaks not 
error, but truth. 

If we need any additional proof that the deepest lore 
is the most universal, and that all universal ideas are 
true, we might refer to the universal sense of sin, the 
necessity of redemption, and the necessity of some 
atonement by sacrifice and blood! Are not these ideas 
everywhere found ? Do they not form the very sub¬ 
stance of all religious feelings among pagans ? and are 
they not voices in all parts of the heathen wilderness 
prophetic of the coming truth ? In short, there is not 
one vital truth in divine revelation concerning the 
whole race of man, that has not its likeness, though in 
mournful caricature and hideous burlesque, in the reli¬ 
gious ideas of pagans. This proves beyond all doubt, 
that, though the reason and logic of fallen humanity 
are false, its sighs are true. The infinite wants which 
lie in their constitution reach after the truth. They 
seek, if haply they might feel after and find it. “ For 
we know that the whole creation groaneth and travail- 
?th in pain together until now.” 

Now, the doctrine we are discussing stands in the 

5 * 


54 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


same category with these universal ideas just men¬ 
tioned. What has been said of them, is equally true 
of this. It belongs, like them, to those universal truths 
which spring up spontaneously from all hearts, in all 
ages, places, and circumstances; and, like them, it is 
not doubted, except where persons have overcome their 
spontaneous and instinctive feelings by false philoso¬ 
phy, by rationalistic sophisms, and by casting up diffi¬ 
culties and objections against it, without giving due 
w r eight to positive considerations and implicit faith. 
This doctrine has as deep a necessity as that of the 
doctrine of a future life itself; for, that man is a social 
being, is just as deeply grounded in his nature as that 
he is an immortal being, or even as deeply as the feel¬ 
ing that he is a being at all. Why then should not the 
universal belief that the doctrine of future recognition 
is true, be taken as a real prophecy of its truth ? The 
universal belief in its truth, and the universal desire 
that it may be true, show that there is a want of it in 
our nature. They show that it is not a conclusion from 
premises that might be false, but a free instinctive tes¬ 
timony of nature, spontaneous and disinterested. We 
get it not first “ by any elaborate instructions, or dint 
of argument, or any long train of consequences ; but it 
strongly masters our understandings by its native evi¬ 
dence, and springs up in us an unpremeditated 
resolve.” 

These considerations, however, though to a reflecting 
mind of the deepest force, may not carry with them 
the convictions of most persons, as readily as some 
others which shall follow. If the mere fact that this 
faith in future recognition—like that in the existence 


A UNIVERSAL BELIEF. 


55 


of God, the soul’s immortality, and the sense of guilt 
and need of redemption by sacrifice — is general, be 
taken as proof of its foundation in truth, the following 
several collateral considerations will increase our con¬ 
victions of its truth. 

I. We remark, first, that although the belief in this 
doctrine is common to all, yet it grows in the mind and 
heart, and becomes firm in proportion as Christianity 
prevails. 

Where religion flourishes most, there this belief is 
most firmly held, and most warmly cherished. This 
will not be disputed. It is not so with error; though 
long held and ardently loved, it always grows faint and 
feeble in the light of Christianity, and finally vanishes 
entirely. If this belief were a gross pagan error, it 
would have shared the same fate, amid the progress of 
Christian light and truth. It could not have lived in 
the radiance of revelation. It has, however, been just 
the exact reverse. It has not only lived in the bright 
blaze of divine revelation, but it has actually grown 
bright and lovely in its brightness. Error may be 
compared to the mists of earth, which pass away be¬ 
fore the rising sun; but truth, to plants which are 
W’armed and cheered by its rays, which bask joyfully 
in its beams, and receive from its influence new beauty 
and perfection. So has it been with this doctrine. It 
has grown lovely, consistent, and more than ever de¬ 
sirable, as Christianity has aroused the hopes of men, 
enlarged their conceptions of the destiny of their own 
spirits, and pointed them to the joyous inheritance of 
an endless life. 

II. Not only, generally, has this belief in future 


56 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


recognition increased with the progress of religion, and 
been most consistent and desirable where religion was 
most honored; but it also grows strong in individual 
hearts in proportion as they grow in grace. 

Those who are most deeply imbued with the spirit 
of Christ, hold most warmly to it. It grows with their 
spiritual growth, brightens with their hopes, and 
strengthens with their strength. Why is this so, if it 
be error ? Is it not the Holy Spirit of truth which 
enlightens and sanctifies the Christian’s heart ? Are 
not the changes wrought in the soul, wrought by Him ? 
Does not He work in them heavenly graces ? Does not 
He guide them into all truth, and cleanse them from 
error ? and, though He makes no new revelations to 
them, yet does He not show them of the things of 
Christ ? unfold in their hearts divine truth in all its 
enlighteing and comforting bearings and details ? If 
these are His workings in the heart, could this faith in 
future recognition grow and increase under His influ¬ 
ence if it were an error ? Would it not wax faint, and 
vanish aw'ay as fast as the Spirit wrought truth into 
the heart as a sanctifying element to free it from all 
error? Yerily, it would. The very fact, therefore, 
that this doctrine gains a firmer hold in the heart while 
the Spirit is doing His work of grace there, proves 
that He cherishes it, and that it is therefore not error, 
but truth. If this conclusion is not admitted, we 
charge the Spirit of truth with begetting error, and 
the Spirit of comfort with encouraging dependence 
upon a vain consolation. We tremble at such a thought. 

III. This belief is also more firmly held by saints 
than by sinners. 


A UNIVERSAL BELIEF. 


57 


The wicked, though they perhaps all profess to be¬ 
lieve this doctrine, nevertheless hold it, as they do all 
revealed truth, in a kind of practical unbelief. It 
never acquires the same force or preciousness in their 
minds and hearts, as it does in the case of Christians. 
How careless and thoughtless generally are unregene¬ 
rate men on this subject! When one of their friends 
dies with the Christian’s hope, it would be to them in¬ 
tolerable to think that this is an eternal separation, as 
long as they remain in their sins, if a sense of future 
recognition were alive in their hearts; but, though they 
know themselves to be sinners, and the departed one 
to have been pious, and hence to have gone whither 
they cannot come, yet how little practical effect has it 
upon them ! It is an event that makes a transient im¬ 
pression, and passes in a day ! They do not feel that 
this is to them an eternal separation; and yet such is 
the truth; but they would feel it, were this faith in 
future recognition deeply set in their hearts. This 
shows how faint, shallow, and floating, are their views 
and feelings in reference to it. 

It is not so on the part of Christians. They feel 
deeply and long the absence of Christian friends who 
have died in the Lord. They long after them with a 
kind of holy impatience, till ofttimes the strength of 
their sorrow draws them sooner after the departed ones 
into the tomb — and into Heaven! We can only ac¬ 
count for the fact that this belief is stronger in saints 
than in sinners, on the ground that the same grace and 
the same Spirit’s influences, which sanctify the heart, 
also encourage it in this precious faith. This could, 
however, not be the case, were it not founded in truth. 


58 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


IV. Not only is this faith more operative in Chris¬ 
tians than in sinners, but it is most active in the hearts 
of Christians themselves in the time of their deepest 
sorrows. 

When the darkness of their souls is greatest, on ac¬ 
count of the loss of those whom religion itself taught 
them to love more than they could have loved them 
without it — when they sit dumb and silent in grief, 
this thought comes and looks forth smilingly upon 
them, like the cheering light of hope from behind the 
clouds of despair. The consolation of this doctrine 
comes, with a strength and sweetness 'which it has not 
at any other time, in the night-time of loneliness and 
bereavement—just when it is most needed. When 
evening comes—and to whom does it not come ?—then 
do dark clouds gather around the gloomy portals of 
closing day; yet the sun behind them, out of sight, it 
is true, but still shining, opens up golden vistas be¬ 
tween them, like gates of light, into a brighter heaven 
beyond; so, when the friendly orbs around which our 
affections circled, and which were the light and joy of 
our souls, sink beneath the horizon of earth, the belief 
in a heavenly recognition forms inlets, through which 
the love-light of the departed still streams back into 
our sad hearts, and gives us promise of a brighter 
morrow. A soothing voice, deep in the forlorn spirit, 
seems to say, 

Be still, sad heart, and cease repining; 

Behind the cloud is the sun still shining. 

Thus, while sitting, bereaved and mournful, under the 
willows, where the stream of mortal life flows sighing, 


A UNIVERSAL BELIEF. 


59 


we are comforted. Why is this source of consolation 
so peculiarly refreshing just at this time ? Is the Holy 
Spirit “the Comforter,” who abides with us always? 
and has He nothing to do with the light of comfort 
which thus arises in our hearts from this doctrine in 
our darkest hours ? Yea more, does He at this time 
allow our hearts to be deceived into quietude by the 
sweetness of a lie ? Or does He mock our sorrows by 
a consolation which will only end in dreary disappoint¬ 
ment ? God forbid! The thought of it, if seriously 
entertained, is not far short of blasphemy. 

These considerations, it seems to me, must have 
great force to a reflecting mind. We see that effects 
are produced by this doctrine, that can only be pro¬ 
duced by the Holy Spirit’s co-operation; we must, 
therefore, conclude that it has His sanction, and must 
be true. 

Not only do we derive a proof in favor of this doc¬ 
trine from the universal belief that it is true, but also 
from the universal desire that it may be true. 

We do not suppose, let it be remembered, that the 
mere fact that this desire exists in the minds of some 
men is of itself a satisfactory proof that it is true. 
This desire might be awakened in some by earnest spe¬ 
culation on the subject — it might spring out of the 
imperfection of human knowledge, or out of wrong 
ideas of heavenly felicity : yea, even out of the natural 
heart entirely; for low sensualists, and even refined 
ones, may look for sensual delights in heaven, and may 
even ardently desire them; but this is no proof that 
they will be found there. We say, therefore, that the 
mere fact that this desire exists in the hearts of 


60 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


some, is of itself no satisfactory evidence that it will 
ever be realized. It is quite different, however, when 
this desire is universal, as it is in this case. Then 
it is the voice of nature, of which God himself is the 
author, under the pressure and sense of its own wants, 
proclaiming with undivided testimony what those wants 
are, and what will satisfy them. Men, for some self- 
interest, may delude themselves, may create wants, and 
then seek to have them satisfied; but these will always 
be sectional and limited: a want like this, which is 
universal, is different. It is the simple, spontaneous 
utterance of nature, unsophisticated and free — nature 
instinctively groaning, painfully but hopefully, in the 
direction of its destiny, and reaching earnestly forward 
to feel its way into rest and peace. 

As in the case of an universal belief, so also in the 
case of an universal desire , this fact, in connection 
with other facts, which naturally grow out of this and 
are associated with it, afford a strong proof of the 
truth of the doctrine of future recognition. 

Thus, the fact that this desire, though universal, is 
strongest where Christianity prevails most, and in¬ 
creases as our spirits grow in the Christian life—just 
as the belief in it grows with growth in grace — is evi¬ 
dence beyond doubt that this desire is founded in Chris¬ 
tian truth. If the Holy Spirit sanctifies and increases 
these desires while He is performing his gracious work 
in the heart — which he does, as is shown by the fact 
that they do increase in proportion as the work of 
sanctification goes on—then they are surely founded in 
real want, and will certainly be satisfied in a complete 
realization. The Spirit does not induce us to cherish 


A UNIVERSAL BELIEF. 


61 


desires, and Himself strengthen them, for the full satis¬ 
faction of which there is not complete provision made 
in those rich consolations which He has in store for all 
God’s dear children. If He did this, he would work 
on the soul for a false issue. He would he triflng with 
our spirits; yea, even with our sorrows ! He would be 
only mocking us, while leading us forth with comfort¬ 
ing words to fearful and bitter disappointment! This, 
the Comforter, the Spirit of all truth, will not do. No. 
When w r e have been long absent from our homes and 
friends, the desire to see them grows stronger, the 
nearer we draw towards them; so, the farther we pro¬ 
ceed on the heavenly way, under the guidance of the 
Comforter, towards those who are now “ saints in 
light,” the more does our desire to join them increase. 
Which now is most reasonable to believe, that the Holy 
Spirit increases this pious desire to make the disap¬ 
pointment more hitter, or to make the joyful meeting 
more ecstatic ? I have asked, and thou shalt answer 
me. 

We have now seen that the hope, belief, and desire 
of future heavenly recognition, are universal; we have 
also seen in what way this fact furnishes a strong 
ground in which to rest the belief that it is a true doc¬ 
trine. We cannot help observing in what an interest¬ 
ing light this fact places the whole human family be¬ 
fore our view. Various as men are in their religious, 
civil and social characters, and in their positions and 
circumstances in life, all fondly cling to this hope. In 
this, high and low, rich and poor, bond and free, Chris¬ 
tians and pagans, all agree. The king upon his throne, 
and the beggar weary beside the highway, equally de- 
6 


62 HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 

sire this boon. In this the most learned theologian, 
and the most ignorant pagan, are of one mind. It is 
strange, if this be error, that amid such a variety there 
should not he some whose hearts and minds could sur¬ 
mount it, and cast the delusion in hatred away.—What 
is most interesting in this view, is the reflection : What 
a leveller is truth, especially the truths of the other 
world ! All who embrace them must step down upon 
the same humble level. Where are earth’s aristocratic 
distinctions in the light of eternity ? At the well of 
Jacob, Christ the Great, and the Samaritan woman 
alike quench their thirst — like that well are the foun¬ 
tains of consolation which God opens up from the 
future life; here all who will drink must meet. The 
king may dip with a golden goblet, and the beggar with 
a gourd; but the water is the same to both. Where is 
your greatness, ye proud ones ? Where is your roy¬ 
alty, ye of the princely line ? Where are your titles, 
ye 6lite of the earth ? Your hope of eternal blessed¬ 
ness is a hope to sit with a “ beggar in Abraham’s 
bosom.” Bring your crowns, your sceptres, your dia¬ 
dems, and all your royal toys, ye great ones—lay them 
down at the feet of our common Saviour, 

“And crown Him Lord of all.” 

The fact of the universality of »this doctrine, as just 
discussed, is interesting, also, in teaching us that there 
are yet universal ideas in this world of fragments. 
Humanity, and human hopes and fears, are still one. 
In all its variety and diversity, there remains, never¬ 
theless, a blessed unity. It proclaims itself as one, if 


A UNIVERSAL BELIEF. 


G3 


not in its conflicting interests, still in its wants and 
wishes. Its misery is one; its bereavements are alike, 
and it partakes of one sorrow. The world, then, can 
still sit together, if at no other time, when it weeps! 
If we come not together in our faith, we do in our 
hopes. If we cannot meet in the house of praise, 
prayer and worship, we do meet in the house of mourn¬ 
ing. This should teach us to cultivate the sweet and 
tender sympathies of an universal charity. 

It is a refreshing thought to us, that, in the midst 
of the almost endless perplexities of fragmentary ideas 
and cold negatives, there are still some positive bonds 
of universal and eternal fellowship. We testify to this 
by the tears of our common grief. In this sphere our 
sympathies are truly catholic. All weep over broken 
ties; these ties, therefore, concern all. He that mourns 
— and who mourns not — is our brother! Let us seek 
to draw more closely to each other in all respects. Let 
our common w T oes, our common love, and our common 
sorrow for the dead, teach us to lay aside all selfish¬ 
ness—to cultivate common interests, and common sym¬ 
pathies. In our graves we shall be one, and alike! 
The kingdom of the dead is a catholic kingdom — all 
lie low in the dust. 

“Their hatred and their envy is now perished.” 

Here we meet, both in our affections and in our 
final condition. Let us learn, therefore, to love the 
living as we love the dead. Why should we cherish 
so fondly our love for the departed, and desire that 


64 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


our relations to them may not he broken for ever, 
and not learn to draw closer those ties which lie so 
near to us among all the living? For this purpose, 
God breaks our hearts into tenderness and tears, by a 
common sorrow, that our affections may 

Like kindred drops be mingled into one. 

Shame on our religion, that we meet not, unless we 
flow together on the stream of our mutual tears!—but 
better thus than not at all. 

This universal desire after a heavenly recognition, 
then, besides affording us a precious argument in favor 
of its truth, teaches us, also, that all the hatred, divi¬ 
sions, and conflicts in our race, are against nature, as 
well as against God’s will, and the spirit of our holy 
religion. Nature, from its broad bosom, in its common 
hopes and fears, proclaims the human race a brother¬ 
hood. The cord of love, however, that should run 
through humanity, alas! is broken. Let us seek to 
restore it. This we can only do by imbibing the life 
and love of that revelation in which both the true rela¬ 
tions of life in this world, and the blessedness of love’s 
immortality, are brought to light. As we expect to be 
eternally near each other in the upper kingdom of love, 
let us begin to draw the cords closer on earth. • Let us 
long to have broken ties mended, even as we long to 
have existing ones to last for ever. In Christ, and in 
him alone, can our race, long divided and estranged by 
sin, be brought together. He is lifted up that he may 
draw all men unto Him. To Him shall the gathering 
together of the people be. Those who are united to 


A UNIVERSAL BELIEF, 


65 


him in life and love, will be united also to each other 
here in this world through life, and in heaven eter¬ 
nally. In Him, 

The saints on earth, and all the dead,’ 

But one communion make; 

All join in Christ, their living Head, 

And of his life partake. 

In such society as this, 

My weary soul would rest; 

The man that dwells where Jesus is, 

Must be for ever blest. 


6 * 


66 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


CHAPTER IV. 


Jjnnrttltj Jttingnitinn in tjje ligjit nf Erarait. 


All love believes in a double immortality — in its own, and in 
that of the object it loves. When love once fears that it may 
cease, it has already ceased. It is all the same to our hearts whe¬ 
ther the beloved one fades away, or only his love. 

Jean Paul. 

It has by some been thought necessary to raise 
several distinct questions in regard to future recogni¬ 
tion, so as to place it in a reasonable light. By some 
there has been “a great gulf fixed”—not between the 
saved in heaven and the lost in hell, where God has 
fixed it, but between the abode of the saints before the 
resurrection and after it. Some deny that, as taught 
in the Heidelberg Catechism, “ the soul after this life 
shall be immediately taken up to Christ its head”— 
some deny that, as taught in the Shorter Catechism, 
“ the souls of believers are at their death made perfect 
in holiness, and do immediately pass into glory”— 
some deny that, as taught in the Westminster Confes¬ 
sion, the souls of believers are at death immediately 
“received into the highest heavens.” Instead of this 
consoling doctrine, the existence of a “ middle place * 
is imagined, where the spirits of the saints are detained 
until they receive their bodies. Hence it has been 




IN THE LIGHT OF REASON. 


67 


thought necessary, in proper respect to this imagina¬ 
tion, to inquire whether recognition will take place 
among disembodied spirits in this “ middle place” be¬ 
fore the resurrection. As to the intermediate or dis¬ 
embodied condition of the saints, we will presently 
give answer. The existence, however, of any such 
middle place, we deny. It has no foundation either in 
reason, scripture, or the teachings of the Church, ex¬ 
cept where these have been made to speak under the 
influence of pagan philosophy. This, however, is not 
the place to discuss this question.* 

If there is no intermediate place, there is, neverthe¬ 
less, an intermediate condition. This may still seem 
to leave behind it a difficulty. Even if the spirits of 
the saints at death, “ being then made perfect in holi¬ 
ness, are received into the highest heavens,” still, being 
disembodied, there may seem to be difficulties in the 
way of recognition which will not exist after the resur¬ 
rection. Still, I see no reason why this should be a 
separate question; for, so far as the scripture evidence 
which is brought forth on this subject bears upon future 
recognition in general , we have just the same reason 
to believe that it will take place before the resurrection 
as after it. The Scriptures plainly make no distinc¬ 
tion of this kind. The only thing, then, necessary to 
be determined, is, whether there are any insurmounta¬ 
ble difficulties from the side of reason lying against it, 
which would demand a separate discussion of these 

* The grounds on which the existence of a middle place is denied 
are given in the author’s work entitled, “ Heaven, or an Earnest and 
Scriptural Inquiry into the Abode of the Sainted Deadwhere this 
subject is discussed at length. To it the reader is referred. 



68 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


questions. If no such difficulties exist, it may remain 
to us one question, as the Scriptures have made it. 

Do any such difficulties exist ? To this we answer, 
that the idea of future recognition, even among disem¬ 
bodied spirits, is not unreasonable. Even if it were 
above reason, it might not be against it; but it is not 
even above reason: for we know that there are pecu¬ 
liarities of spirit, peculiarities of intellectual faculties 
and of moral dispositions, which mark the identity and 
difference of beings, and which distinguish them from 
each other, just as clearly and tangibly as they are 
distinguished by any peculiarities of body. By these, 
recognition is possible. In the future world, before the 
resurrection, where spirits meet spirits without the in¬ 
tervention of the body, these peculiarities of spirit may 
be even more prominent and striking than any peculia¬ 
rities of the body can possibly be; and thus, instead 
of hindering, may greatly facilitate mutual recognition. 

There is, moreover, reason to believe that, among 
the bright and sinless hosts of heaven, there are spi¬ 
rits who know and recognize each other, without any 
of those coarse and sensible marks of identity which 
are here in this life furnished by our intervening bo¬ 
dies. There is therefore nothing unreasonable in the 
idea of mutual recognition among the saints in their 
disembodied state before the resurrection of the body. 
Hence we must give the Scriptures, which, so far as 
they throw light upon this subject, make no distinction 
of the kind and no division of the subject, their full 
weight and their greatest latitude. 

It has also by some been thought necessary to de¬ 
termine or inquire whether future recognition will take 


IN THE LIGHT OF REASON. 


69 


place at once, and on sight , as we now recognize an old 
acquaintance whom we unexpectedly meet in a strange 
city or country; or whether it will take place gradually, 
by converse and intercourse, which will at length lead 
to the mutual discovery that there was a previous ac¬ 
quaintance, just as we sometimes, in old age, meet a 
friend that we had not seen since youth, and with whom 
we gradually revive old associations. Here, again, we 
see not the necessity of looking at these two ideas as 
two questions which need separate discussion and in¬ 
quiry. Recognition will no doubt take place in both 
these ways, just as it does in this world. We love to 
look at the other world as having the same social fea¬ 
tures as this; and there is no Scripture and no reason 
that forbids it. We shall doubtless be more surprised 
to find the social aspects of the other life so much like 
this, than we shall be to find it so different. 

In those “ heavenly pastimes,” we may suppose some 
sudden and joyful surprises, in cases where one shall 
at once recognize his friends, and he not be at once 
recognized by them. Kindred may meet, as the sons 
of Jacob met Joseph in Egypt, and, while regarding 
each other as strangers, a sudden joyful melting of 
hearts may be produced by some such expression as — 
“I am Joseph your brother!” Again, there may be 
meetings in which a gradual recognition will take place, 
like that of the two disciples who fell in with Christ, 
after his resurrection, on their way to Emmaus. At 
first when he joined himself to their company, their 
« eyes were holden” that they did not know Him; but 
after some conversation with them by the way, in which 
he entered into the subject of their thoughts in regard 


70 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


to “the things which had happened at Jerusalem,” and 
especially after they came to Emmaus, while he sat at 
meat with them, and “ took bread, and blessed it, and 
brake, and gave to them,” which brought to their minds 
the scene of the last supper, behold! “ their eyes were 
opened, and they knew Him!’ Here, associations 
gradually waked up in their minds and hearts the re¬ 
membrance of their Lord, and with these returned to 
their recollection his familiar features. So in the hea¬ 
venly world, beyond doubt, there will be a great variety 
of ways in which old associations and acquaintanceships 
will be revived; some sudden and joyful to ecstacy — 
others gradual, but none the less pleasant on that ac¬ 
count. Some may take place through the kind minis¬ 
try of friendly angels, and others through the affec¬ 
tionate agency of saintly spirits. In whatever way, 
and by whatever means it may take place, it is in en¬ 
tire accordance with reason, and just what we might 
suppose to be natural and proper to that social king¬ 
dom in our Father’s house, in the everlasting home of 
the Sainted Head. 

In considering farther, and more particularly, the 
reasonableness of this doctrine, we do not intend to 
confine ourselves to deduction of pure reason, but shall 
present such inferences and conclusions as may be legi¬ 
timately drawn from known facts, whether in Scripture 
or experience. It must be remembered that reason at 
present lives in the light of revelation, and must be so 
viewed. From some truths revealed in the Scriptures, 
though not directly on this subject, we may neverthe¬ 
less deduce arguments in favor of this doctrine, which 
show it to be so reasonable as strongly to prepossess 


IN THE LIGHT OF REASON. 


71 


our minds towards it. This will be of vast account in 
the way of preparing our minds to consider it in ita 
scriptural light. 

I. This doctrine of future recognition is reasonable, 
because many of the same means which will enable us 
to identify ourselves in another life, will also enable us 
to identify our friends and former acquaintances. 

When we awake from the swoon or sleep of death, 
or emerge through the change of death into the reali¬ 
ties, circumstances, and affinities of another life, we 
suppose our first feeling will be that of consciousness 
of our own identity. We will feel and be conscious 
that we are ourselves, and not another. This we can 
only do in connection with our past history. It may 
be the work of an instant; but still it involves a pro¬ 
cess by which the mind connects itself with what is 
past, and recollects its previous existence. Thus, for 
instance, we spend a night in the house of a friend; 
we wake in the morning suddenly, and scarcely know 
where we are, or who w r e are. The mind at once en¬ 
ters upon a process of discovery by self-recollection: 
to do this, it goes back and calls up its past history, 
remembers the way in which it has come, and, soon, 
full consciousness of itself and its relations is restored. 
So, in the other world, after the change of death, a 
consciousness of identity must in some such way be 
continued. Suppose, however, that in the case of the 
person just instanced, sleeping in the house of his 
friend, the room should be furnished in a certain way 
when he lay down to sleep, and the furniture should be 
entirely removed and changed while he slept; the diffi¬ 
culty in coming to a consciousness of his identity would 


72 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


be greatly increased. In that case it would be neces¬ 
sary for him to depend upon pure recollection of the 
past in the way of thought and memory. This must 
be the case with our souls passing the change of death ; 
we will find ourselves in new relations, circumstances, 
and affinities; and our consciousness of personal iden¬ 
tity can continue only as it feels itself the living con¬ 
tinuation of the past. This life, with its associations, 
must come up before the mind and awake in the heart; 
and with this must appear our friends with whom we 
were bound up on earth by social ties and relations. 
Undoubtedly our social relations and dependences—for 
it was these that, more than anything else, moulded 
our life—must stand out in prominence among our first 
recollections, after we have passed the physical trans¬ 
formation which awaits us in death. This forms at 
least a reasonable basis for the doctrine under contem¬ 
plation; nothing can well be more reasonable. Its 
denial, under this view, involves a violence so unheard- 
of and unnatural, that our reason is startled and dis¬ 
tressed at the thought of it. 

II. Closely allied to the above observations, is the 
fact that memory will continue in another life. 

That this world is remembered in the world to come, 
is evident from the example of the rich man to whom 
father Abraham said those piercing words, “ Son, re¬ 
member that thou in thy life-time !” We are told that 
he did remember his “father’s house,” and his “five 
brethren!” This, it is true, was in the place of the 
lost; but memory being a noble faculty when rightly 
used, we may safely believe, with additional reasons, 
that it will continue among those who “ shall know as 


IN THE LIGHT OF REASON. 


73 


they are known.” * “ However, I may affirm for an 

infallible truth,” says the pious and learned Rev. 
Charles Drelincourt, of Paris, “ that the glory of hea¬ 
ven, as well as grace, shall bring nature to perfection, 
but shall not destroy it. It shall add to it other ex¬ 
cellences, but it shall not take away those that it hath 
already. It shall not abolish any of the faculties; but 
it shall beautify and enrich them with new ornaments. 
Therefore, consequently, it shall not take away our 
memory, which is one of the rarest gifts and abilities 
of the reasonable soul.” 

It is hard to see how memory can exist in the better 
world without leading to recognition. How deep-seated 
and precious are old associations! and how strong is 
our desire that they may be revived! Our friends, 
from a previous knowledge of their piety, and impelled 
by our affection for them, will be sought after; which, 
we may reasonably conclude, will lead to the restora¬ 
tion of them to us, and us to them. Desire after our 
friends is among the first emotions of our souls when 
away from them in a new country. Especially, when 
we are happy and they are in circumstances less blest, 
do we think of them. Our love to them naturally be¬ 
gets this feeling. We think of them, inquire after 
them, and long for their presence with us, that they 
may share our blessedness. We cannot conceive how 
memory can continue in heaven without leading to such 
results. Thus, we will not only remember this world 
as a means by which our identity is preserved; but we 
see also that there is a principle in our nature which 
strongly urges our thoughts backward, and sets them 


* See “ Heaven, or the Sainted Dead/’^pp. 276-282. 

7 



74 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


to seeking for those loved and left behind. All this is 
favorable to future recognition; and, that it is true, is 
the most reasonable conclusion we can arrive at. The 
opposite is certainly against reason and all experience. 

III. This doctrine will appear reasonable when we 
consider how deeply and radically the social law lies 
imbedded in our nature. 

We are created social beings, and it is in no sense 
good for man to be alone. We are all by nature, and 
in our constitution, physical, intellectual, and moral, 
united, related, and dependent. All disorganization 
and alienation is the result of sin, and in the highest 
degree violent and unnatural. This piety seeks to re¬ 
store, whose nature and object is, to unite and bind. 
Christianity, coming from above into a world spoiled 
by the divisions which sin has caused, establishes a 
fellowship which is to unite us on earth, and then to 
raise us, thus united, into the upper kingdom of holy 
and eternal love. It is not reasonable that religion 
should form ties to be broken at death, when it comes 
from heaven and designs to raise us to heaven. What 
grace makes, is to last for ever — what grace binds, is 
never to be severed. 

We know, moreover, that religion elevates, improves, 
sanctifies, and perfects true friendship. Does it do 
this only that death may destroy it ? Ah ! who can 
believe it ? On the contrary, time only increases true 
attachments. In connection with the past, true friend¬ 
ship lives. The hallowed associations which connect it 
with the past are its life and its joy. Memory is the 
fuel of love. Old and long-remembered associations 
give to it its mystic sacredness. As the recollections 


IN THE LIGHT OF REASON. 


75 


of childhood always awaken youthful feelings in our 
hearts, so the remembrance of the past gives a fresh 
glow and a lovely tenderness to social ties. How then 
can true love die? Our nature must be entirely 
changed before its affections can cease. 

If such be our social nature, it is certainly not rea¬ 
sonable that it, unfolded through life under these sweet 
relations and dependencies of earthly friendship and 
love, should be suddenly robbed of them in the transi¬ 
tion of death. This would be a violence which is no¬ 
where tolerated in the laws of life and love. We will 
venture the assertion that there is no law more essen¬ 
tial to our existence, and which may not with less dan¬ 
ger be laid aside, than this social law of love. A being 
that can break loose from all former ties and affection¬ 
ate affinities, is that moment changed into a devil! As 
“ God is love,” and as all his attributes are connected 
and controlled by this — the very essence of his nature 
—so we, who are made in his image, are social beings 
necessarily. The kingdom of Christ exists on earth 
to redeem, preserve, and perfect our social nature, and 
reveal the nature of God in us; all the beginnings of 
it on earth are, therefore, beginnings of its heavenly 
perfection. The very establishment and perpetua¬ 
tion of Christianity on earth has been, from the first, 
by families, tribes, and generations; thus it laid hold 
of, and took up into itself at once, the elements of the 
world’s social life, and used them in its own advance¬ 
ment ; and it will not, it cannot, we think, cast them 
off in its heavenly glorification. Hence we see that 
Christianity, in its very essence, identifies itself with 
the social law and life of our nature, and makes them 


76 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


eternal, by making itself eternal in them. If this be 
so, then the ties here formed, so far as they are sanc¬ 
tified by Christianity, will continue uninterrupted 
through death, and be eternally perfecting in heaven. 

Moreover, we know that some of the prominent ties 
and relations formed in the kingdom of Christ on the 
earth will be perpetuated. For this w T e have scripture 
proof. Christ's apostles shall sit together as judges of 
the twelve tribes of Israel. As to himself, his people 
shall see him as he is, face to face. Is it unreasonable, 
nay, is it not in the highest degree reasonable, that 
this recognition shall descend from these prominent 
points down into the minuter avenues and lanes of the 
social life of heaven? “Will not He who 4 loved La¬ 
zarus,' and who said, 4 Our friend Lazarus sleepeth,’ be 
recognised by Lazarus in the better world? and if he 
recognise his Saviour, why not also his sisters, Martha 
and Mary ? And will not 4 the disciple whom Jesus 
loved,' that bosom friend, recognise his Lord and Mas¬ 
ter ? and if so, why not all those who sat at meat with 
him, when he affectionately reclined on his Redeemer ?” 
Certainly all this is reasonable. It is difficult to see 
how it can be otherwise. It is much easier to believe 
it true than false. 

IV. Heath sometimes makes interruptions in the 
process of things which seem, in the nature of things, 
to require completion in a future life; which, however, 
can only be done by recognition. 

We are, for instance, often blest in this world by a 
person who may never know that he has blessed us ; we 
may be prevented, by circumstances of some kind or 
other, from making known to him our gratitude. Is it 


IN THE LIGHT OF REASON. 


77 


not, then, exceedingly probable that, in a future life, 
opportunity will be afforded us to acknowledge the 
favor with gratitude, by which both his and our own 
happiness would be greatly augmented ? In the case 
of the philanthropist, it seems necessary, in order to 
his being rewarded according to his works, that the 
fruits of his labors, as they exhibited themselves un¬ 
known to him, in the happiness and salvation of others 
should be brought to his view, either by God or by the 
persons blessed; that, as part of his reward, he may 
review with holy satisfaction the good he has been en¬ 
abled by grace to perform while on earth. This, it 
seems reasonable to believe, would lead to the reviving 
of earthly relations and associations, and thus gradu¬ 
ally to recognition, and a renewal of former earthly 
acquaintance. 

This is the more probable, as gratitude, in the heart 
of the one who receives favors, naturally produces in 
him a desire to express his feelings to the one who has 
blessed him. In the case where an individual is in¬ 
debted for even the salvation of his soul to the instru¬ 
mentality of one whom he is never afterwards privileged 
to see, will he not desire to meet him in heaven ? This 
desire will naturally lead to a search after him, and, we 
may well suppose, to a meeting, and to mutual joy. 
What joyful meetings of this kind may take place in 
the heavenly world ! With raptures inexpressible will 
those who have turned others to righteousness, find 
them again in the heavenly places, as their hope, their 
joy, and crown of rejoicing. 

V. The final judgment necessarily involves details 

7 * 


78 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


of acts of persons inseparably associated 'with each 
other, so as to lead naturally to recognition. 

All our good deeds are of a social kind — a great 
many of our good acts are so connected with the acts 
of others, and their influences are so merged into each 
other, that even we ourselves cannot trace our own acts 
in all their consequences. We influence others, and 
they us. All the sins against the second table of the 
law are social sins, and cannot be referred to, in the 
judgment, without reference to all parties involved and 
implicated. So also the virtues of the second table 
are social virtues, and must be so disposed of, in the 
rewards of the judgment. Thus, in their reward, they 
must be associated with the persons judged, as they 
were associated on the earth. The judgment by which 
these acts are rewarded must have reference to these 
acts in their social character and connections. Thus, 
faithfulness of parents in their family duties — faithful¬ 
ness on the part of the members of a congregation to¬ 
wards each other, and in the community generally — 
makes the recollection and recognition of those thus 
associated absolutely necessary, in the proceedings of 
that great day. Though the influences of social acts 
may be lost to us in the details of their silent, and oft- 
times secret consequences, yet “every man’s work shall 
be made manifest: for the day shall declare it.” We 
know that if the giving of a cup of cold water in the name 
of a disciple is rewarded in heaven, it will be done with 
such a reference to the saint who received the draught 
as will enable the one who is rewarded to recognise him. 
How this fact will swell the little kindnesses of earth 


IN THE LIGHT OF REASON. 


79 


to an exceeding weight of glory in heaven! The sen¬ 
sations of joy which the remembrance of such acts will 
produce, are not too mean to excite into higher rap¬ 
tures of bliss even the holy bosoms of the saints in 
light. 

YI. The doctrine of heavenly recognition is highly 
reasonable to us, when we consider the ground we have 
for believing that our knowledge in the future world 
will be vastly enlarged in a general way, and of course 
in this respect in particular. 

That our minds will be greatly enlarged in the future 
life, none can reasonably doubt. It is a matter of ex¬ 
press revelation. “For we know in part, and we pro¬ 
phesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, 
then that which is in part shall be done away. When 
I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a 
child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, 
I put away childish things. For now we see through 
a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in 
part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.” 
1 Cor. xiii. 9-13. The apostle’s declaration, “It is 
sown in weakness, it is raised in power,” is as much 
applicable to the soul as to the body. Sin has greatly 
obscured the mind, and partially deadened its faculties. 
As the Israelites could not sing in a strange land, so 
the human faculties cannot act with freedom and en- 
ergy in the captivity of sin, and in their alienation 
from God; but when brought home into their proper 
relation to Him, they will expand into new bloom of 
beauty and life. In those genial climes of cloudless 
day, they will unfold themselves without obstruction, 
and without end. There, where the heart shall be 


80 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


pure, the mind will become clear. In the society of 
angels and pure spirits, and near the radiant source 
of all wisdom and knowledge, the human mind will, 
like God himself, clothe itself with light as with a 
garment. 

It is certainly unreasonable to imagine, that while 
the soul makes new attainments in knowledge, it will 
lose and leave behind what it has already attained. 
Our present knowledge, so far as consistent with the 
divine will and wisdom, will not be destroyed, but taken 
up and included in our future knowledge. It is not 
reasonable to believe, that the attainments we have 
made in this life, should give us no advantage in the 
beginning of the life to come. This would make all 
our earthly tuition of no avail, and needless. If, then, 
our knowledge will increase in general, it must also 
increase in particular; and if our present knowledge 
will not be destroyed, but merged and included in the 
higher wisdom of our eternal state, it will most assuredly 
bear along with it that particular knowledge which is 
associated with the heavenly recognition of our sainted 
friends. 

In this view, there is a good deal of sense and sound 
reason in the quaint and pleasant anecdote which has 
often been related of an old Welsh divine. One day, 
while pursuing his studies, his wife being in the room, 
she suddenly interrupted him, “John Evans, do you 
think we shall be known to each other in heaven?” 
Without hesitation, he replied, “ To be sure we shall; 
do you think we shall be greater fools there, than we 
are here?” It is certainly far from wise to suppose, 
that it will be part of the perfection of our future state 


IN THE LIGHT OF REASON. 


81 


to lose that knowledge which we now have, so far as it 
involves no immorality. 

VII. The interest which heavenly beings feel in the 
affairs of saints on earth, furnishes us reasonable ground 
for the belief in heavenly recognition. 

There is no difficulty in believing that, on the part 
of saints in heaven, an acquaintance with us is kept 
up. We have lost them for a time, but they have not 
lost us. As they have gone higher, they have capa¬ 
cities and privileges which we, who are still beneath 
them, have not; and this may extend to a constant 
oversight and interest in us.* This sense is as natural 
as any other to the passage, “ Then shall I know even 
as also I am known.’* We are now known to them; 
but when we enter the state in which they now are, 
then shall we know them as they now know us. The 
Old Testament saints are represented as a cloud of 
witnesses around us, like the crowd which bent down 
from all sides upon the race-ground in the Olympic 
games. According to this allusion of the Apostle, they 
are around us, not merely as examples, but as interested 
spectators. That we are not conscious of this, does 
not prove its improbability; for the lower orders of 
nature that are beneath us are not aw r are of our perfect 
knowledge of them, neither do they know us, and yet 
we know them — their nature, habits, prospects, and 
destiny. In like manner, we have reason, and also 
intimations of Scripture, to confirm in us the belief 
that our sainted friends are bending an interested eye 
of love over us in all our earthly pilgrimage — that 
they keep up a tender and affectionate acquaintance 

* See “ Heaven, or the Sainted Dead,” third edition, p. 282, et seq. 



82 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


with us, and stand ready, w r hen we fail on earth, to 
receive us into the arms of holy and eternal love, at 
the very gates of the heavenly paradise. Or must we 
believe that they are less interested in us than the rich 
man in hell was for his five brethren! 

Even if the saints do not, and cannot behold and 
follow^ us with personal attention, they can still keep 
up an acquaintance with us, in our earthly history, 
through the angels. Angels are the constant com¬ 
panions of the blest in heaven; and they are also upon 
the earth, “ ministering spirits, sent forth to minister 
for them who shall be heirs of salvation.” In heaven 
they “do always behold the face” of our Father; and 
on earth they “encamp around our dwellings,” and 
attend us, to “keep us in all our ways.” As on 
Jacob’s mystic ladder, they are constantly descending 
from heaven to earth, and ascending from earth to 
heaven; thus keeping alive the fellowship of love on 
both sides of the mysterious veil! 

Can we for a moment believe that, if the saints above 
are still interested in us, there are no inquiries of re¬ 
turning angels in regard to us, and that our sainted 
friends do not thus keep themselves informed as to our 
state and life ? It is not only said that angels them¬ 
selves are interested in saints on earth, but that “there 
is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one 
sinner that repenteth.” Who are these that rejoice in 
the presence of the angels over a converted sinner? 
Are they not the sainted friends of the sinner ? they 
who, while on earth, often prayed for his conversion, 
and in remembrance of whose faith, and in answer to 
whose prayers, God has now sent forth to him His 


IN THE LIGHT OF REASON. 


83 


converting grace ? Our relation with the spirit-world, 
and our participation in its sympathies, is most inti¬ 
mate and endearing; it is only the benumbing influence 
of dull sense that keeps us from feeling it. The very 
reverence which we feel towards the unseen spirits of 
the dead, proclaims the power of their influence over 
us. Though this feeling is dark and unintelligible to 
us, it is not so to them. We live in the midst, and 
under the constant power, of mysterious unseen influ¬ 
ences, which strongly declare the fact, that we are in 
a sphere of existence influenced by a higher world, and 
under the attention of higher intelligences, who are 
ever drawing us to themselves; and, soon as the sepa¬ 
ration of soul and body — the natural and finite from 
the spiritual and infinite — shall take place in death, 
we shall discover at once how awfully and sweetly near 
we have always been to the dead, and how much we 
shared in their affectionate sympathies. It is only 
when the infant becomes a man, that it fully sees and 
knows what the mother’s eyes, arms, and bosom, were 
to it, during its years of infantile helplessness. So, 
when our spirits once break through the thin veil of 
this imperfect earthly life, which hides the world of 
spirits, into the full stature of celestial manhood, they 
will only fully understand those influences, the good 
of which they have always felt. If such is the rela¬ 
tion, and such the mutual sympathies between heaven 
and earth, it is in the highest degree reasonable, that 
the holy ties of earthly affections pass unbroken through 
the change of death, and revive with new strength and 
beauty in the upper kingdom of love. 


84 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


We take great pleasure in the conclusions to which 
these reflections bring us. We delight greatly in the 
hope that the ties which bind us to our sainted friends 
are not broken in death — that while we are loving 
them still, they love us too; and while we long to find 
them again, they are watching with holy interest over 
us, and are alluring us, by sweet mysterious influences, 
into their holy society, and into a participation, with 
them, of celestial joys. Seeing we are compassed about 
with so great a cloud of witnesses, we are animated to 
lay aside every weight—even that of the body itself in 
death—that we may fly to their embraces, and be near 
them, as they are near the Lord. 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


85 


CHAPTER V. 


Jhmrftn Kragnitiim mrnmg tb? 3m 


Oh, wondrous times! — those palmy days of old; — 

When God with prophets spake, and angels walk’d 
With men — when heaven, with mild and radiant eye, 
Through dreams, and types, and shadowy visions look’d, 
And smiled on all who sought a better life. 

Though darkly hung the mystic veil that hid 
The better world; yet, through it, faith beheld, 

On the celestial side, the lovely forms 
Of sainted friends in blessed pastimes move. 

They mourn’d, but still in hope, for those beyond; 

And, smiling through their tears, in meekness said, 

They cannot come to us, but we shall go 
To them. 

We have discovered some beautiful glimmerings of 
this interesting doctrine of future recognition in the 
midst of pagan gloom. We have seen that it is a uni¬ 
versal belief, hope and desire. We have also seen that 
it is in accordance with the dictates of enlightened 
reason. We come now to view it in the lovely religious 
twilight of Jewish hope. 

It is agreed upon, by all who have earnestly re¬ 
flected upon the subject, that all religious ideas among 
pagans may be traced back, through dim and misty 
tradition, to the Jews, to whom alone spiritual revela- 
8 




86 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


tions were anciently made. The report of these reve¬ 
lations, though only in faint and feeble echo, reached 
the surrounding pagans, and w r aked up their hearts 
and minds to a sense of their wants. Around the 
abodes of the Patriarchs, Prophets, and Jewish people 
generally, the holy light of heaven shone; and though 
there appears also at times to be light out in the deep 
gloom, it is but a reflection: just as there are bright 
objects on the earth, though the sun is the source of 
their light. If, then, we are to trace the rays of light, 
which dart broken through the gloom of pagan night, 
to the sun of revelation, as it arose -over the Jewish 
people, we may expect to find an increase of light 
upon this subject in Jewish ideas and theology. True, 
even here we expect to find this doctrine only obscurely , 
as the Jewish dispensation was one of hope—the dawn 
of the eternal morning. Yet we do well to look to 
this, as “a light that shineth into a. dark place, until 
the day-dawn and the day-star ariseth in our hearts.” 
Although it is shadow, and not substance, yet the sha¬ 
dow always gives us a correct idea of the substance, 
even if it be only a partial one; though it be only 
prophecy of what shall be, it is sure prophecy, and will 
lead us to a complete fulfilment. If we follow the 
smallest, feeblest rill, that rises in the remotest and 
most obscure vale of earth, it will lead us finally to the 
great and wide sea — it is water, small as it is; so, if 
we seize upon the feeblest ray of light that catches our 
eye in the surrounding gloom, and follow it, we come 
at length to the full, clear, and unclouded truth. 

We shall see, I trust, in this inquiry into the Jewish 
ideas of recognition in another life, that the doctrine 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


87 


will present itself with additional clearness, precious¬ 
ness and beauty, as we proceed. By tracing the doc¬ 
trine in this historical way, it will not only seem more 
living, but also more convincing; we will be carried 
along by gradual degrees of evidence, and our path, 
like that of the just man, will shine more and more 
unto the perfect day. 

Before we proceed to offer the proof, that the Jews 
believed in the doctrine of heavenly recognition, a few 
preparatory remarks are necessary, to open the subject 
properly before us. Some have strangely pretended 
to doubt, whether the Jews knew anything at all of 
another life. That their ideas on this subject were as 
clear and full as ours, no one will pretend; but that 
they had many consoling views of an immortal life, 
none can deny. The doctrine of immortality, like that 
of the existence of God, is taken for granted in the 
Old Testament. Rewards and punishments, the hopes 
and fears of the future, the eternal favour or displea¬ 
sure of God, were evidently as familiar ideas among 
the Jews as every-day matters. As the doctrine of 
another life was thus taken for granted, it is rather in¬ 
directly alluded to, than directly stated. The Patriarchs 
and Prophets no doubt knew much more of this doctrine 
than is mentioned in the sacred record. God, for in¬ 
stance, told our first parents that if they ate of the 
forbidden tree, they should surely die, in that day. As 
they did not die a natural or temporal death imme¬ 
diately, it seems necessary, in order that they might 
know at all that the penalty had actually fallen upon 
them, that they should know something of a spiritual 
and eternal death. This they could not know without 


88 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


the doctrine of immortality. The translation of Enoch 
and Elijah could mean nothing to them without the 
knowledge of another life. Noah could not have acted 
the part recorded of him without reference to a recom¬ 
pense of reward; for, how could he be a “ preacher of 
righteousness,” without having some motive to present 
from another world, or without exhibiting the “ end of 
righteousness, which is quietness and assurance for 
ever ?” The whole, moreover, is decided by Paul, who 
tells us that what Noah and the Patriarchs did, they 
did “by faith.” Eaith itself implies the knowledge of 
a future life, for it is “ the substance of things hoped 
for, the evidence of things not seen.” To say, then, 
that any of the Old Testament saints had faith, is to 
say that they believed in the unseen realities of another 
life. 

Our present design does not require us to pursue 
this part of the subject any farther. We may add, 
that if what has been said does not satisfy the reader 
on this point, he may consult the following passages 
of Scripture, and see whether he can afterwards doubt 
that the Jews knew of, and believed in, a future life. 
2 Kings ii. 1—8. Job xix. 25—28. Psalms xvi. 10; 
xvii. 15; xlix. 15; lxxiii. 24—26. Eccl. xii. 7, 14. 
Isaiah xxvi- 19. Ezek. xxxvii. 1—10. Dan. xii. 1—8. 
Christ himself declares that Moses knew that the dead 
are raised. Luke xx. 38. Paul says that Abraham, 
and a host of others, looked for an heavenly country. 
Heb. xi. 

This much it was necessary to say, that all doubt on 
this point may be removed, and that we may be con¬ 
vinced that the Old Testament saints felt themselves 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


89 


in close, warm, and living sympathy with the unseen 
and eternal world. Under the power and influence of 
this impression we will be able to see more force than 
we could otherwise do, in the proofs which we intend 
to present in favour of their belief in future heavenly 
recognition. It is plain, that the doctrine of another 
life could not have been so prominently before their 
minds, and so warmly in their hearts, without inducing 
them to be much exercised with the interesting ques¬ 
tion, whether they should meet and recognise their 
friends there, and renew again the affections of earth. 
Especially would their belief in the resurrection of the 
body naturally lead them to this inquiry. That they 
did think of it, believe in it, and console themselves 
w r ith it in bereavement and sorrow' at the death of their 
friends, is evident from several considerations to which 
we will now attend. 

I. The pious care and affection with which the Jews 
treated the bodies of their beloved dead, points us 
strongly to their belief in perpetuated love and final 
reunion in heaven. 

If they did not expect to follow the departed through 
the grave — if they did not believe that their bodies 
should be revived again, and be returned to their em¬ 
braces inhabited by the souls of their friends, why did 
they preserve, like a precious treasure, with such de¬ 
vout affection, their lifeless bodies ? Look, for instance, 
at the tender and affecting appeal of Abraham to the 
sons of Heth, after the death of Sarah his wife, for 
the field and cave of Machpelah in the land in w'hich 
he sojourned, as a burying-place for his dead. They 
offered to him “the choice of their sepulchres/’ but he 


90 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


politely, yet decidedly, declined. He wished to pur¬ 
chase the field with money “for a possession” — he 
wished to have it “ made sure for a burying-place.” 
He desired a place as his own, which he might conse¬ 
crate as a place of repose for his dead in all coming 
time. His soul shuddered at the thought of committing 
such a treasure as the remains of his departed wife to 
the sepulchres of Heth, where he could not himself 
exercise a devout watch over them. Amid the green 
and rural scenes of Machpelah — for “all the trees 
that were in the field, and in all the borders round 
about, were made sure” — he would have her body to 
rest, in token of his belief that she still lived in the 
ever-green bowers of Paradise; that he still stood in 
living communion with her; and that he expected to 
see her again in that world where death is unknown. 
He desired that the glorious renovation which each re¬ 
turning spring-time effected, amid the rural scenes of 
Machpelah, might be to him a sweet pledge of that 
new and eternal life which should once awake from her 
tomb, and an earnest of the revival of those affectionate 
ties which had been but temporarily sundered by death. 

The conduct of the pious and mourning Patriarch, 
in this whole transaction, is very significant when care¬ 
fully studied. There were the “ choice sepulchres of 
the Hittites offered to him, in which to bury his beloved 
Sarah; but how, in that case, could he have been as¬ 
sured that her bones would lie till the final day in 
peace ? As once in Egypt another king arose which 
knew not Joseph, who did evil to Israel; so, in the 
land of the Hittites, another generation would soon 
arise, who would not know Abraham, and would show 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


91 


no respect for his dead. How too, if he buried in their 
sepulchres, could he be assured that he would be per¬ 
mitted one day to lie by her side in death ? Above all, 
how could he then visit her grave in quiet, as Mary 
did the grave of her Lord, undisturbed and unseen by 
the cold world, to shed the^ silent tear of affection to 
her memory, and refresh his sorrowing heart with the 
hope of speedy reunion in heaven ? No wonder that 
he insisted on having it as his own : — “ For as much 
money as it is worth ye shall give it me, for a posses¬ 
sion of a burying-place among you.” 

This is but an instance of the general tenderness 
and affection which the Jews in all ages manifested to¬ 
wards the remains of their kindred dead. That the 
same feeling was sacredly cherished among the Jews 
in later ages is evident from a beautiful passage in 
Ecclesiasticus, an apocryphal book written about three 
hundred years before Christ. Chap, xxxviii. 16. “ My 
son, let tears fall down over the dead, and begin to 
lament, as if thou hadst suffered great harm thyself; 
and then cover his body according to the custom, and 
neglect not his burial.” For another beautiful exhibi¬ 
tion of this feeling, read Tobit i. 17—21; ii. 1—9. 
The same may also be seen from the well-known cus¬ 
toms of embalming their bodies, and of giving them 
decent and respectable burial. It certainly speaks 
strongly of their belief that the dead were still theirs; 
that the tie was not finally and for ever broken; and 
that the grave, which they watched and watered with 
the tears of continued affection, would yet yield back 
to them their beloved dead. 

II. The strong desire, which reigned in the hearts 


92 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


of the Old Testament saints, to be buried together 
•with their kindred in the same place, is also a proof 
that they believed in a perpetuated union with their 
friends through death in a future life. 

They had lived together in life; they wished to lie 
together in death; to rise together in the resurrection, 
and to dwell together in everlasting habitations. How 
significant and affecting is the dying request of Jacob ! 
“ And the time drew nigh that Israel must die: and 
he called his son Joseph, and said unto him, If now I 
have found grace in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy 
hand under my thigh and deal kindly and truly with 
me; bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt: but I will 
lie with my fathers, and thou shalt carry me out of 
Egypt, and bury me in their burying place.”* After¬ 
wards he made the same request of all his sons, stand¬ 
ing together around his dying couch: “ And when 
Jacob made an end of commanding his sons, he gather¬ 
ed up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, 
and was gathered unto his people.”f 

What a moving scene ! Are you a painter — can 
you throw it upon canvass ? Are you a poet — can 
you describe it ? Have you refined Christian sensi¬ 
bilities — can you feel it ? Can you think that the 
dying Patriarch, thus commending his body to the 
care of his sons under the solemnity of an oath, and 
desiring so affectingly to be buried with his fathers, 
believed this to be an eternal separation from them ? 
No. He felt that their communion was unbroken, and 
he wished that their bodies might sleep side by side, 
so that when their souls and bodies should be reunited, 


* Gen. xlvii. 29, 30. 


| Gen. xlix. 33. 



AMONG THE JEWS. 


93 


they might he “ raised up together,” with their Re¬ 
deemer in the air, “ and so he ever with the Lord.” 

The same feeling had reigned in the heart of pious 
Abraham, the father of the faithful. He had this in 
his mind when he purchased Machpelah. He did not 
need so large a piece of ground for Sarah alone. He 
wished that field to become the family burial-place for 
his posterity in time to come, that all who proceeded 
from his loins might lie around him in the peaceful 
arms of death, and awake with him in the resurrection 
morn. In this he succeeded. When he himself died, 
it is particularly mentioned that he was buried in the 
same place. “ His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him 
in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron, the 
son of Zohar the Hittite, which is before Mamre; the 
field which Abraham purchased of the sons of Heth: 
there was Abraham buried, and Sarah his wife.”* 

In this same spot Jacob was afterwards buried by 
his own earnest request, together with many other 
members of the Patriarchal families. Listen ! “ I am 
to be gathered to my people,” says dying Israel; “ bury 
me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of 
Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of 
Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of 
Ephron the Hittite, for a possession of a burying- 
place.” How particularly he describes it, that they 
may not be mistaken as to the spot! Then how affect- 
ingly, in the next verse, he gives the reason why he 
desires to lie in that place! “ There they buried Abra¬ 
ham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and 
Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Leah !”f What 


* Gen. xxiv. 9, 10. 


f Gen. lxix. 29, 31. 



94 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


a touching request — what a moving reason ! Why 
this desire which they felt, and which all more or less 
feel, of being buried with parents, grand-parents, wives, 
brothers, sisters, and near kindred, if it does not indi¬ 
cate the belief that there is also a fellowship among 
the dead ? that if we follow the leadings of these in¬ 
stinctive emotions of nature, they will bring us again 
to those whom death has hid, but not taken away 
from us ? 

What lovely associations are these which cluster 
around the sacred shades of Machpelah ! The future 
history of this burying-place of kindred seems strikingly 
to shadow forth the eternal union of its silent sleepers. 
It is stated by Josephus, fifty years after Christ, that 
in his day this place was still in good repair—that the 
posterity of Abraham erected splendid sepulchres there, 
which were, when he w T rote, still to be seen. Mention 
is also made of this place by Eusebius and Jerome, 
and also by other church fathers, down as late as the 
eighth century. Even at this day the sepulchres of 
the Patriarchs are shown to the pilgrims in the Holy 
Land, by the monks on Hebron; and so well do all 
the circumstances agree with Scripture notices, that 
travellers, the most intelligent, see no reason to doubt 
that the tombs they behold are those of the Patriarchs 
who were buried in Machpelah over four thousand years 
ago. “I know nothing,” says the learned Dr. Robin¬ 
son, who visited the place in 1838, “ that should lead 
us to question the correctness of the tradition, which 
regards this as the place of sepulchre of Abraham and 
the other Patriarchs, as recorded in the book of Ge¬ 
nesis. On the contrary, there is much to strengthen it.” 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


95 


Where are now the “ choice sepulchres’’ of the Hit- 
tites ? Alas! there is no trace of them to be seen. 
The memory of the wicked shall rot; there lingers no 
living savor of hope around the place where they lie. 
Not so with Abraham’s field and the cave in it; they 
are still before Hebron as they were in the morning of 
the wrnrld; and the pious pilgrim may still stand beside 
the sacred patriarchal tombs, in silent and reverential 
wonder, while his heart exclaims— 

How many, many memories 

Sweep o’er my spirit now! 

Say, what means this fellowship of the dead ? Shall 
their sleeping dust be drawn to one place by their love 
for each other, and remain thus undivided for ages ? 
and shall their spirits, by whose affectionate care and 
desire this union of dust with dust was effected, be 
now and for ever separate from each other, and revive 
no more their former love? Who can believe it? What 
we see on earth of the history of their bodies is a true 
prophecy of the history of their spirits in heaven. They 
believed that their spirits would still be in each other’s 
society above, wdiich led them to desire that their bo¬ 
dies, under the promise of a blessed resurrection, should 
sleep the short intervening night together till the dawn 
of that eternal day, when not only the kindred of the 
patriarchs, but the saints of all ages and nations, 
“ shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down 
with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom 
of heaven. ,r 

This affection for kindred, which manifested itself 


96 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


thus in life and in death, was not wholly instinctive; 
it was encouraged and cultivated by their religion. The 
Jewish religion was a family religion — the Christian 
religion is the same; it places our kindred nearest to 
us. It respected and used the ties of kindred in ex¬ 
tending the covenant and its blessings to whole families 
in their character as families. It sanctified and per¬ 
fected family love. This would naturally encourage 
them to hope that these ties should live, and remain in 
delightful force beyond this life, and be resumed in the 
recognition of the heavenly state. If then this, and 
the future life, are related to each other as seeding and 
harvest, we may safely take this custom of burying 
together, as indicating their belief in the perpetuation 
of earthly ties through the dissolution of the tomb. 

This desire to be buried by the side of those we love 
is not a dark morbid superstition, which passes away 
before enlightened and refined Christian feeling. It is 
as strong in Christian hearts as it was in Jewish—and 
strongest of all with those whom piety itself has 
taught to love their friends more than they could, or 
would, otherwise have done. We all more or less feel 
its power. The family burial-ground has associations 
even to us, which make the idea of death less dreary; 
and there is, perhaps, no one to be found, who, if he 
can have his choice, would not rather lie at last in the 
silent circle of his kindred, than to be buried among 
strangers in a distant land. Amid the loneliness which 
steals over the spirit at the approach of death, comes 
also the desire, so plaintively expressed by Jacob: — 
“ I will lie with my fathers — bury me in their bury- 
ing-place!” 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


97 

There is a beautiful instance of this, beautifully re¬ 
lated by Mrs. Sigourney, of a little girl, who expressed 
a desire that she might lie with her mother, of which 
she would not be denied. 

There was a shaded chamber, 

A silent, watching band; 

On a low couch a suffering child 
Who grasped her mother’s hand. 

She told her faith in Jesus— 

Her simple prayer was said, 

And now that darkened vale she trod 
Which leadeth to the dead. 

Red fever scorched her bosom— 

Frost chilled the vital flame, 

And her sweet brow was troubled, 

As anguish smote her frame. 

Yet ’mid the gasp and struggle, 

With shuddering lips she cried, 

“ O mother, dearest mother, 

Bury me by your side!” 

She was then asked in what place she would lie—whe¬ 
ther in the “ shady dell,” where the early violets bloom, 
or in the “ancient church-yard,” among the “white 
marble monuments.” But all ideas of place faded 
before the one all-absorbing idea: “ Bury me by your 
side.” 


One only wish she uttered, 

While life was ebbing fast,— 

“ Sleep by my side, dear mother, 
And rise with me at last.” 


9 


98 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


Thus she persisted—and the nearer she drew to her 
end, the more ardent became this dying wish. It was 
the last request that trembled upon her tongue ! 

Look ! Look ! — the thin lip quivers, 

The blue eyes open wide, 

And what a hollow whisper steals,— 

“ Bury me by your side !” 

How natural do we feel this to be ? It is nothing else 
but the consciousness of a continued fellowship, which 
shrinks back with deep instinctive dread at the thought 
of final separation. It is the spirit, uttering its pro¬ 
test,—declaring that the dissolution of the body shall 
not affect the ties of the soul; and, on the other hand, 
it is the final protest of the body, asking that its in¬ 
terest in this eternal fellowship may not be forgotten— 
and that, in the mean time, it may be permitted to 
mingle with its kindred dust. 

III. That the Jews expected to meet and know each 
other in the heavenly world, is also evident from the 
manner in which they usually spake of the death of 
their friends — that they were “ gathered to their fa¬ 
thers,” or “gathered to their people.” 

“ Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a 
good old age, an old man, and full of years, and was 
gathered to his people.” The language is exceedingly 
beautiful, tender, and consoling, and points to this 
precious faith. It cannot mean that his body was ga¬ 
thered to his forefathers, for some of them lived and 
died in Ur of the Chaldees; Terah, his father, died in 
Haran, (Gen. xi. 32,) and was no doubt buried there. 
Abraham himself, as we have seen, was buried in 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


99 


Machpelah in Canaan, and Sarah his wife was the first 
of the sacred families buried there; for he only pur¬ 
chased it at her death. Gen. xxiii. 19. Neither can 
the expression, “gathered to his people,” be intended 
to express, in general, the idea that he was gathered 
with the dead; for the language is particular, that he 
was gathered to his people. That it cannot mean sim¬ 
ply that he was laid in the grave with the rest of the 
dead, is also evident, from the fact that after it is said 
he was gathered to his people, it is added, in the next 
verse: “ and his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in 
the cave of Machpelah.” Hence he was gathered to 
his people before he was laid in the grave with the dead 
in general. It must then be regarded as its natural 
meaning, that after he died, and before he was buried, 
his soul was gathered to his people, who had departed 
this life before him, and who w r ere now in. that “city 
which hath foundations,” in that “better and heavenly 
country,” for which they all “looked,” while they 
“ confessed themselves pilgrims and strangers on the 
earth.” Among these was his own Sarah ! 

“ And Isaac gave up the ghost and died, and was 
gathered unto his people, being old and full of days; 
and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.” Here again 
he was gathered to his people. In this, and also in 
the former passage, it is most natural and correct to 
take the personal “ his ” or he , as meaning the soul, 
the highest and best part of his nature. We are told 
what was done w T ith his body — they buried that — but 
he , that is, his spirit, which properly constitutes him¬ 
self— which was the centre and substance of his per¬ 
sonality— that was gathered to his people. Moreover, 


100 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


could it be said, in any true sense, that those bodies, 
now turned to ashes in the tomb, constituted “his 
people?” May not their spirits in heaven be so called, 
with tenfold more propriety. He, then, — the living, 
thinking, loving spirit of Isaac, — was gathered to his 
people, who were living, thinking, loving spirits m 
heaven. 

When the brethren of Joseph brought his bloody 
coat to their father Jacob, and told him that “ an evil 
beast had devoured him,” “ he refused to be comforted: 
and he said, For I will go down into the grave unto 
my son mourning.” Gen. xxxvii. 35. The word grave 
(sheol) means here, not the place of burial, but the 
place of departed spirits — eternity. To this place the 
mourning patriarch expected to go “ unto his son.” It 
does not mean that he would mourn there, but mourn¬ 
ing would hasten him to that place, and that he would 
mourn all the way until he came to him. His son had 
gone, and he would now go on his pilgrim way in dis¬ 
tress, until he found him in the place of departed 
spirits, when he himself should die. That this is his 
meaning is evident, for “ all his sons and his daughters 
rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comfort¬ 
ed.” He had loved Joseph, and had now lost sight of 
him, and would now mourn till he found him again: 
He will hear of no comfort which earth can offer. This 
is his resolution: “ I will go down into the grave unto 
my son;” then will I be comforted, when he whom I 
have lost is restored to me, and I to him. “ Thus his 
father wept for him.” 

That Jacob did not look for comfort merely in death, 
and by going into the grave to his son, is evident from 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


101 


the fact that he believed him to have been torn by 
wild beasts, and expected that if there was anything 
of him left, it was but a few scattered fragments of his 
torn body. He could not expect, then, in any sense 
that had reference to his body merely, to go down 
“unto his son.” He would mourn, not till he was laid 
by his side in death; for that, in the nature of the 
case, could never be; but till his spirit met and em¬ 
braced again his beloved Joseph, in those regions of 
immortal life, where misfortune and death could no 
more rush in between them. 

“And when Jacob had made an end of commanding 
his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and 
yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his peo¬ 
ple.” Gen. xlix. 33. That this has not reference to 
the patriarch’s body being entombed with his people, 
is evident from the fact that he was not buried till 
forty days after his death. How then could it be said 
that he was gathered to his people when he died, if by 
this expression we understand merely his burial by 
their side ? He had said just a little before (verse 29) 
to his sons: “ I am about to be gathered unto my 
people: bury me with my fathers.” If now, “to be 
gathered to his people,” is equivalent to being buried 
with them in the grave, these words of Jacob, just 
quoted, w T ould be a tautological absurdity; thus: I am 
about to be buried with my people: bury me with my 
fathers. Who would charge the good patriarch with 
uttering such meaningless words when just about to 
die ? Surely there ought to be a better reason for 
doing so, than just to clear out of the Bible so precious 
and consoling a doctrine as the heavenly recognition. 
9* 


102 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


No. Abraham was in heaven, Isaac was there, and 
now Jacob is about to be gathered to them; and after 
them shall come many more, who shall come from the 
east and west, and shall sit down with them in the 
heavenly kingdom. Age after age the church in heaven 
has received accessions, as the saints were gathered 
home; and this glorious process will still continue till 
the last blood-washed spirit has gone through the gates 
of death into Abraham’s bosom ; then the hosts of the 
ransomed will be “a great multitude which no man 
can number.” 

When God sent Moses up into Mount Nebo, he said 
to him, “ Get thee up and die in the mount whither 
thou goest up, and be gathered unto thy people, as 
Aaron, thy brother, died in Mount Hor, and was ga¬ 
thered unto his people.” Deut. xxxii. 50. How can 
this mean that Moses should be buried with his fore¬ 
fathers, when it is afterwards said that “ he was buried 
in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Beth- 
peor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this 
day.” Deut. xxxiv. 6. 

From all these considerations, we think, it must be 
evident to all, that the expression “ gathered to their 
people,” meant, among the Jews, more than being 
buried with them, and also more than passing into the 
companionship of the dead in general.* It was to their 

* Since the above was written, I have met with the following in 
Jahn Arch., g 203: — The Hebrews regarded life as a journey, as a 
pilgrimage on the face of the earth. The traveller, as they sup¬ 
posed, when he arrived at the end of this journey, which happened 
when he died, was received into the company of his ancestors, who 
had gone before him. Opinions of this kind, (viz., that life is a jour¬ 
ney, that death is the end of that journey, and that, when one dies, 



AMONG THE JEWS. 


103 


people among the dead, and not to all the dead in ge¬ 
neral, that they were gathered. It was their spirits, 
of which alone society and fellowship can properly be 
predicated, which were to be gathered together at death. 

How could the consoling idea of heavenly recogni¬ 
tion be better and more beautifully expressed than 
with the words “ gathered to his people ? gathered to 
his fathers ?” These household words waken up in the 
heart a thousand pleasant associations of former at¬ 
tachments. It places departed friends in a waiting 
circle around the couch of the dying, so that death 
itself seems but as the gathering around us of the 
arms of our sainted friends, receiving us with holy 
affection’s softest and most soothing embrace. With 
the hope of being gathered into such a society of kin¬ 
dred at the moment of death, and these themselves 
glad in the Saviour’s smile, death will be sweeter and 
softer than repose. Thefe will be not a moment’s lone¬ 
liness between leaving our friends on earth and joining 
them in heaven. Oh! to die thus, with the arms of 
earthly and heavenly love joined beneath and around 
us ! Can this be an hour of terror ? Can this be a 
Jordan of chafing waves and chilling storms? No. 
Bather it is like going home. 

How blest the righteous when he dies! 

When sinks a weary soul to rest, 

How mildly beam the closing eyes, 

How gently heaves the expiring breast! 

he mingles with the hosts who have gone before,) are the origin and 
ground of such phrases as the following: to be gathered to one’s 
people: to go to one’s fathers. This visiting of the fathers has refer¬ 
ence to the immortal part, and is clearly distinguished from the 
mere burial of the body. 



104 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


So fades a summer cloud away, 

So sinks the gale when storms are o’er, 

So gently shuts the eye of day, 

So dies a wave along the shore! 

IV. An argument in favour of the eternal reunion 
of friends in heaven, may be drawn from the examples 
of pure disinterested friendship recorded in the Old 
Testament. Although we are not able to form from 
these a direct proof, or deduce a logical and demon¬ 
strative conclusion, yet, in contemplating them, we are 
so impressed with a sense of the eternal nature of true 
friendship, that we must/eeZ these ties to he indissolu¬ 
ble, even though we cannot, from this source alone, 
know them to be such. We may, nevertheless, feel the 
highest degree of assurance that those, who loved with 
such pure and fervent affection, did not believe that 
death would break these ties and separate them for 
ever. 

What can be more beautiful and tender than the re¬ 
vival of old kindred feelings and affections at the time 
when Joseph made himself known to his brethren ? 
Though, on account of their previous unhappy divi¬ 
sion, their feelings must have been somewhat estranged 
and alienated, still, latent but not dried up, in their 
hearts lay the quiet fountains of holy brotherly love, 
which was ready to flow into streams, and mingle into 
one, at the touch of a word. Oh ! what a moment was 
that, w T hen Joseph had dismissed his attendants, and 
was alone with his brethren ! He burst into tears be¬ 
fore he spake a word, and “w T ept aloud.” How must 
the past have rushed in upon the hearts of his brethren 
with all its overpowering associations, at the words: 


AMONG TIIE JEWS. 


105 


“ I am Joseph ; doth my father yet live ?”—“ And his 
brethren could not answer him. And he fell upon his 
brother Benjamin’s neck, and wept; and Benjamin 
wept upon his neck. Moreover, he kissed all his bre¬ 
thren, and wept upon them!” Such was this meeting, 
after so long a separation; and a separation, too, which, 
we should have supposed, would have gone far to root 
out of their hearts all remaining affection for each 
other. But they were brethren! The warmth of 
kindred love was yet latent in the heart of each; and 
they needed only to be brought near each other in 
order reciprocally to feel its power. This was all 
effected in a moment: Joseph said to his brethren: 
“ Come near to me, I pray you: and they came near: 
and he said, I am Joseph, your brother, whom ye sold 
into Egypt.” Though the separation of these brethren, 
many years before, was an unfriendly one, yet it was 
only on the surface; there was a deeper life of love 
beneath, and this was now powerfully revived. Why, 
we may ask, should not those who are divided by 
friendly death, without any occurrence to alienate their 
feelings, be drawn together again, in a similar manner, 
after death ? We may, without a profane stretch of 
fancy, picture to ourselves many such meetings in 
heaven. Memory will call up the scenes of earth, so¬ 
cial intercourse will often lead to the discovery of old 
acquaintances, even where recognition shall not take 
place at once, and there will be mutual joy, not un¬ 
worthy of heaven, in such welcome discoveries. 

How pure and disinterested was the love between 
David and Jonathan ! Who can believe that it ended 
in death ? “ The soul of Jonathan was knit with the 


106 


HEAVENLY KECOGNITION 


soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own 
soul. Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, 
because he loved him as his own soul.” Would he not 
then love him as long as he loved his own soul ? As 
this love was based in their soul, and had nothing of 
the life of affinity in it, would it die with their bodies ? 
or would it not rather last while their souls lasted ? 
Who can believe that they walked with each other, 
knit in one soul through life, and then at death were 
suddenly separated, to know nothing of each other 
any more for ever ? No. Friendship so pure as this, 
is not a mere passion or instinct of the flesh, which 
will expire in the grave; it is an attribute of the soul, 
w T hich must live while the soul lives. Of these two 
friends w r e may say truly, what is elsewhere said of 
Saul and Jonathan: “Lovely and pleasant in their 
lives, and in their death they were not divided.” 

Equally affecting and significant with thfe above, is 
the affectionate attachment of Ruth to her mother-in- 
law, Naomi. When Naomi was about to separate from 
her, she “ lifted up her voice and wept.” When Naomi 
continued to urge her to return to her country, and 
leave her, she exclaimed, in language of almost un¬ 
earthly earnestness : “ Entreat me not to leave thee, 
or to return from following after thee: for whither thou 
goest I will go ; and where thou lodgest I will lodge: 
thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: 
where thou diest I will die, and there will I be buried.” 
Ruth i. 16, IT. Certainly such affection, which knits 
hearts so into one through life, which makes them so 
cleave to each other while one after the other sinks 
into the grave, and which makes them so desirous of 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


107 


lying by each other’s side in death — such love is not 
mortal. It must be as undying as the soul itself, in 
which it has its home, and as lasting as that God from 
whom it emanates. “ God is Loveand such pure 
disinterested affection as that exhibited in these in¬ 
stances, is the reflection of his own image in us. It is 
from him that we learn to love. “He that dwelleth in 
love, dwelleth in God, and God in him.” It is His 
Spirit in us that raises our love to its highest perfec¬ 
tion ; and He will not teach us to cherish what must 
die — He will not teach us to hope for that which will 
lead to bitter and eternal disappointment. 

Will it not be a delightful part of 

“Celestial pastimes” 

to revive old associations hallowed by earthly love, to 
recount mutual trials and triumphs, to give expression 
to heartfelt gratitude for favours rendered to each other 
in the communion of saints below, and to join in united 
thanksgivings unto God and the Lamb, that, under the 
leadings of divine grace, a perilous, crooked and event¬ 
ful life has ended at last in such a happy consummation 
of bliss and glory ? This gives a new value, and in¬ 
creased sacredness, to the ties of friendship on earth, 
and a most desirable feature to the joys of heaven. 

Y. The conduct of David, after the death of his 
child, and the source from which he drew consolation 
for his bereaved heart on that mournful occasion, show 
plainly that he believed in the doctrine of heavenly re¬ 
cognition. 2 Sam. xii. 

David had sinned a great sin. As a salutary punish¬ 
ment, God determined to bereave him of his child: 


108 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


“the child that is born unto thee shall surely die.” 
This affected him deeply. He fasted, lying all night 
upon the earth, and humbly besought God that the 
child might live. The elders of his house endeavoured 
to raise him and soothe him, but in vain; he fasted 
and wept until the seventh day, when the child died. 
As soon as he was told that the child was dead, he 
changed his conduct entirely: “Then David arose 
from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and 
changed his apparel, and came into the house of the 
Lord, and worshipped: then he came to his own house; 
and when he required, they set bread before him, and 
he did eat.” This conduct surprised his servants. They 
wondered, that as he had fasted and wept while the 
child was yet living, he should now rise and eat when 
it was dead. His answer to them is beautifully signifi¬ 
cant and satisfactory: “ While the child was yet alive, 
I fasted, and wept; for I said, Who can tell whether 
God will be gracious to me, that the child may live ? 
But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast ? Can I 
bring him back again ? I shall go to him , but he shall 
not return to me !” 

In this passage the royal mourner evidently makes 
known the source of his consolation under this afflic¬ 
tion. His servants wondered that he was sad no more, 
and expressed to him their surprise ; this was his reply, 
in which he tells them what considerations had dried 
his tears. His consolation rests on two grounds. 

1. His resignation to the will of God. While his 
child lived, there was still hope that God would be 
gracious to him, and grant its recovery; for which he 
devoutly used the proper means — fasting, penitence, 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


109 


and prayer. Now, however, as the child is dead, he 
sees that so was God’s will, and he calmly acquiesces 
in it. Can I bring him back against God’s will ? No: 
this he would not do. God’s will is his rule ; and now 
that he knows fully and finally that it was His will it 
should die, he lifts up towards God a cheerful counte¬ 
nance, and weeps no more. 

2. The other source of his consolation is the belief 
that he should find his child again. This indeed would 
not he effected by his weeping the child back again to 
this world; hut it would be by his following the child 
into a future life. “ I shall go to him, but he shall not 
return to me.” “I shall go to him!” says David. 
Where was the child ? where did he believe it to be ? 
Its body was not yet buried, and was therefore, so far 
as its body was concerned, still with him. If even its 
body had been buried in the grave, David knew that 
the dead body was not his child, but only its mortal 
remains. His child was in that place of which David 
himself frequently spake, and especially when he said 
of himself, as the type of Christ, “ My flesh also shall 
rest in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; 
neither wilt thou suffer thine holy one to see corrup¬ 
tion. Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy 
presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are 
pleasures for evermore.” Psalms xvi. 9-11. 

With such views of immortal life, David did surely 
not think of his child as being just among the dead, 
and comfort himself with the hope that he too should 
soon die, and be, like it, in the grave and free from 
trouble. This would have been a stupid or desperate 
yielding to despair, instead of that cheerful resignation, 
10 


110 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


■which he here manifests, at the thought of going to 
his child. If it was the thought that he too would 
die, which comforted him, he would have assigned that 
as the reason of his cheerfulness. This he did not 
do; but he, as plainly as words can make it, declares, 
that he has ceased to mourn, because God’s will is now 
manifest, and because he knows he shall go to his 
child. “ I shall go to him.” 

The rich consolation which this blessed doctrine 
affords at such a time, none but a parent can fully 
know and feel. To see before us “ flesh of our flesh, 
and bone of our bone” — to see our own image gazing 
affectionately upon us from the babe before us — to see 
our own souls and hearts beaming forth from its eyes — 
to hear it call us, Father! Mother ! — This awakens a 
feeling in us that cannot die. Then, to see this image, 
which is but our other self \ calm and cold in death ! — 
then the thought of feeling the warmth of its living 
love no more! Does God ask any one of his children 
to endure this? He Himself asks: “ Can a woman 
forget her sucking child?” No ! There is a yearning 
after it that will not be quiet, till there is a hope of 
future recognition and reunion. There is no doubt 
many parents would have been drawn in grief after 
their sainted children into the grave by a cord of un¬ 
relenting grief, were it not that they drew consolation 
and hope from the same source from which this royal 
parent was comforted: “ I shall go to him.” 

This hope subdues the keenness of grief, and brightens 
up the short interval of sorrow between their death 
and our own, and casts back the light of comfort from 
the distant heavens upon the bleak and dreary shores 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


Ill 


of this mortal life. The consoling thought that the 
parting look which w r e mournfully cast upon their cold 
faces in the coffin, is not the last one after all; and 
that those eyes, in which we so often saw our own 
image reflected, will open upon us with a purer ray, 
and a welcome smile, in the regions of bliss, takes 
away half the pangs of this sorrowful parting. This 
was the consolation of David; and we may, with im¬ 
plicit faith, cherish it as a balm for our own hearts, 
when bruised by fresh bereavement. 

VI. Among the later Prophets, over three hundred 
years after David, we still find allusions, which show 
that the belief in future recognition was common 
among the sacred writers at that time. 

In the 14th chapter of Isaiah there is a graphic de¬ 
scription of the sensation produced on earth and in 
the regions of the dead, at the death of Nebuchad¬ 
nezzar, king of Babylon. His glory is brought to the 
dust, and his oppressions have ceased. Now the earth 
rejoices, and “ breaks forth in singing — yea, the fir- 
trees rejoice at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon, say¬ 
ing, since thou art laid down, no feller is come up 
against us.” Thus was earth moved with joy at this 
event. 

There is also a like sensation in the regions of the 
dead, to which the king has gone, at this event. “Hell* 
from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy 

* The word Sheol, here translated Hell, is, like the Greek Hades, 
a general term, meaning simply eternity, or the regions of the dead, 
without designating the particular condition of the dead as happy or 
miserable. Their actual condition must be determined by the con¬ 
text. In this case it means of course the place of the lost. 



112 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


coming: it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the 
chief ones of the earth: it hath raised up from their 
thrones all the kings of the nations. All they shall 
speak and say unto thee, art thou also become weak as 
we ? Art thou become like one of us ? Thy pomp is 
brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols: 
the worm is spread under thee, and the w T orms cover 
thee. How art thou fallen from heaven, 0 Lucifer, 
son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the 
ground, which didst weaken the nations.”—The whole 
tenor of this passage shows that the dead knew who he 
was. They recognized him as the king of Babylon, 
and address him as a king. He, as a king, is repre¬ 
sented as being received with pomp by the “ chief ones 
of the earth” who knew him before. The other kings 
there are represented as still upon their thrones, and 
as rising up to meet him. They address him with a 
kind of taunting irony, reminding him that his pride 
and glory is departed, and that he, like them, has be¬ 
come weak and a fellow of worms, in the dreary regions 
of the dead. All this shows that there was here a 
mutual recognition. 

This scene, it is true, is among the lost; for, although 
Sheol does only mean the region of the dead in general, 
yet here its meaning Is made definite by the context, 
in which the character of this king is represented as 
wicked — he is also received by hell “from beneath,” 
and is said to have “fallen from heaven.” Its force, 
however, as a proof, that the prophets at this time be¬ 
lieved in future recognition, is not weakened by this 
fact. For we might insist, by way of inference, that 
the ties which bind the wicked together cannot be 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


113 


stronger and more perpetual, than those which unite 
the saints; and if the former stretch unbroken across 
the grave, why not the latter ? Without, however, in¬ 
sisting upon this inference, we may remark that we see 
a great deal more force in the fact, that this passage 
exhibits the dead in general as continuing still in the 
same stations, and as having the same habits, disposi¬ 
tions and characters, as they had here on earth. In 
this passage, the general features of human life, and 
human society, are carried oyer the grave, and are re¬ 
presented as still existing there under the same general 
type. Hence the dead know, and are known, recognize 
and are recognized, by the same marks of identity and 
difference, as here on earth. The whole scene in this 
picture is of earthly imagery, only covered over with a 
thin and semi-transparent veil of mystery, with which 
our mind naturally covers the somewhat awful abodes 
of the dead. Hence in the shades, or in the mysterious 
world of the departed, this passage still discovers the 
continuation of the social life of earth in its general 
features. Kings are still known and recognized as 
kings, great ones as great ones, and friends as friends. 

This same view of the spirit-world continued com¬ 
mon among the Jews, and manifested itself on various 
occasions in the days of our Saviour. The patriarchs 
are spoken of as sitting in the kingdom of heaven, and 
others are represented as being gathered to them, and 
as sitting down with them. The question of the Sad- 
ducees, as to whose wife she should be, who had been 
the wife of seven, shows that the Jews then believed 
that the ties of earth would continue; for, though the 
Sadducees themselves did not believe in a resurrection 
10 * 


114 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


and in another life, yet they knew that the other Jews 
did; and for this reason they supposed that this ques¬ 
tion would trouble them. Had the Jews not believed 
that knowledge of each other would exist in heaven, 
the Sadducees could not have supposed that this ques¬ 
tion would cause any difficulty. 

All this shows most clearly that, as exhibited in these 
allusions, it w T as a common sentiment among the Jews, 
that society in the future life would exhibit essentially 
the same features as here on earth — that habits, dis¬ 
positions, character and station, would there be disco¬ 
verable as here — and that, consequently, all who had 
known each other on earth, would there be able to re¬ 
cognize each other by the same marks and signs which 
distinguished them in this world. In this sense the 
passage under consideration, independent of the infer¬ 
ence alluded to, affords a strong, yea, a conclusive 
proof, that the Jews believed in a general mutual re¬ 
cognition of each other in a future life. 

The Jews, living in the childhood of the world, when 
imagination and hope were stronger than reason and 
clear understanding, must have found this doctrine 
peculiarly precious and consoling. Experience and 
observation prove that, even now, among simple-hearted 
peasants, whose minds are less critical and less logical 
than the minds of those who live in the light of science, 
the memory of the departed is cherished with more 
tenderness and less interruption. We do not mean 
that they believe more, or more firmly, but that they 
doubt less. With what pious and implicit faith is this 
doctrine now held, where there is not the ability to 
offer one reason for it, in the peaceful tents of humble 


AMONG THE JEWS. 


115 


life ! Around many a green country grave-yard it 
clusters with its blessed hopes and consolations, and is 
as fresh and living in the hearts of mourners as the 
green grass and wild flowers that grow in peace toge¬ 
ther there. There no speculative doubts arise. There 
faith rests, not upon reason, hut upon a sweet unques¬ 
tioned tradition, too innocent and too much in accord¬ 
ance with unsophisticated and instinctive nature, to be 
assailed by such as love to doubt. Their love for the 
dead is quite too childlike to be disturbed by thoughts 
either right or wrong. They love their dear departed 
ones with that love which believeth all things, hopeth 
all things, and never faileth. 

This was precisely the condition of the Old Testa¬ 
ment saints. They were children in knowledge, in 
thoughts, feelings, manners, hopes and affections. 
Hence we have such tender and moving instances of 
lovely grief for the dead recorded in the Bible. The 
family feeling was strong and sacred; and they felt 
that those who, year by year, dropped away from the 
circle of their love, were not lost but gone before. By 
a holy and affectionate instinct which, cultivated by 
revelation, grew gradually more and more into a clear 
faith, they felt constrained to cherish their memory in 
the sweet and comforting hope of reunion with them 
in the life everlasting. 


118 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


CHAPTER VI. 


Irtraralti Iragnitinn in tjjv ^tnrljings nf iCjuist. 


When sorrowing o’er some stone I bend, 

Which covers all that was a friend, 

And from his voice, his hand, his smile, 

Divides me for a little while; 

Thou, Saviour, seest the tears I shed, 

For thou didst weep o’er Lazarus dead. 

The direct object of our Saviour’s mission into the 
world was to reveal God’s will, to bring to men life 
and salvation, and thus to repair upon earth the ruins 
of the fall. Intent upon this object, he was concerned 
and employed, rather with men’s duties upon the earth, 
than with their privileges in heaven. Although what 
he did and said was designed in the final issue to bear 
upon the heavenly kingdom, yet his first and immediate 
aim was the establishment of a kingdom upon the 
earth. He did not therefore speak so largely and 
directly of the heavenly world, no doubt because he 
thought it not fit unduly to crowd the future into the 
present. He could have said much of the glory which 
surrounded Him above, and which is waiting for the 
saints, but that was to be revealed to them more fully 
in its time, while as yet his great mission, and their 




IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST. 117 

most urgent duty, was to secure for them a clear and 
sure title to the heavenly blessedness. 

This may account for the fact that almost all we 
know of heaven from the Saviour’s teachings is indi¬ 
rect and incidental. We must therefore expect that 
what we shall find in His teachings on the heavenly 
recognition, will be in hints and allusions, rather than 
direct and positive. If, however, such hints and allu¬ 
sions are, here and there, scattered through the Gospel 
records, they furnish a testimony just as decisive as 
positive declarations. “ When a doctrine is assumed 
as the basis of any reasoning, or appears to be casually 
wrought into the texture of an illustration, it is evident¬ 
ly supposed to be true—nay, such a use of the doctrine 
amounts to a positive affirmation of it; since it origi¬ 
nates in a belief that it is too obvious, or too generally 
received, to require that it should be made the subject 
of explicit statement or formal discussion.” When a 
traveller, for instance, in describing the country through 
which he has passed, alludes to capitals, churches, and 
ships, we know that the inhabitants of that country 
have a government, a religion, and a commerce, just 
as decidedly, as if he had directly stated it. On the 
same principle circumstantial evidence is often more 
convincing and conclusive than direct testimony. 

These incidental allusions are especially strong in 
proof of the doctrine of heavenly recognition, when 
we have other grounds upon which we may reasonably 
hold it by way of supposition; in that case, these allu¬ 
sions confirm the correctness of the supposition, with a 
degree of certainty which admits of no hesitation. This 
supposition we already hold with great confidence, de- 


118 


HEAVENLY KECOGNITION 


rived from the several considerations presented in the 
preceding chapters. Following thus the historical 
process of this doctrine, our assurance increases in 
strength; the stream of evidence enlarges, and acquires 
a more determinate force, and we are borne along freely 
and yet with irresistible power, to its comforting and 
delightful conclusion. 

With these views of the nature and value of the 
evidence we expect to derive from the incidental testi¬ 
mony which falls from our Saviour’s lips, we proceed to 
trace the history of this doctrine in His blessed and 
gracious teachings. 

I. The doctrine of heavenly recognition is involved 
in, and may be inferred from, the nature of that king¬ 
dom which Christ established here on earth, and which 
is to continue in heaven. 

“I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” This, 
though spoken directly in reference to the law, is true 
in a deep and comprehensive sense, and may be applied 
to the mission of Christ in all its departments. The 
Saviour did not come to break and destroy human ties, 
but to elevate, sanctify, and perfect them. For this 
purpose He became Himself human, stood in human 
relations, and was bound by human ties. He came to 
establish a kingdom, making himself its centre and 
life, making all the laws which bind the subjects of it 
to Him and each other, laws of love; and making 
these laws divine , and yet permitting them at the same 
time to remain sweetly human. This kingdom on 
earth is the same which is once to become the kingdom 
of heaven; and we may therefore seek and see, even 
here upon the earth, the pattern and fashion of hea- 


IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST. 119 

venly things, though it he somewhat darkly, in inci¬ 
pient or embryonic stages. ' 

Thus, Christ formed on earth a social economy; not 
thereby to destroy existing ties, but to bind them more 
firmly and lastingly together in a higher principle, the 
principle of divine life, and of holy love. The bonds 
which are to unite the members of his kingdom are not 
to be bonds merely of a common interest, like those in 
human governments, where some individual rights and 
privileges are to be sacrificed for the good of the whole; 
but they are cords of life and love, proceeding from 
His own heart, and binding each to all, and all to Him¬ 
self, as the members of one body — thus securing the 
common good by individual benefit, instead of by indi¬ 
vidual sacrifice. 

Here then is a brotherhood, instead of a civil com¬ 
pact— a family, instead of a nation. United to him 
as the First Born, and Elder Brother, and to each 
other as children of a family; the ties of kindred were 
not to be destroyed, but to be sanctified in Him, and 
from Him extended as the ties of his eternal kingdom ; 
so that, in this larger range, they might expand and 
perfect themselves, by becoming eternal. With this 
blessed object in view, the Saviour-king aimed at the 
destruction of all divisions, and the uprooting of sin 
as their cause. He earnestly and constantly inculcated 
the duty of the holiest love, and the most refined 
friendship, and hallowed all the ties of kindred, as 
well as of affection, by his own example. 

It seems to me, that to a reflecting mind it must be 
the strongest of all proofs of perpetuated friendship 
in heaven, that Christ gave countenance to particular 


120 


HEAVENLY KECOGNITION 


friendships upon earth. He allows and sanctifies them 
by his own example. Though He loved all men, He 
loved His disciples in particular; and even among His 
own disciples he seems to show a certain peculiar affec¬ 
tion for some. Peter, James and John, seem to have 
been his particular favourites. They were on many 
occasions, his confidential witnesses. When he raised 
the centurion’s daughter from the dead they were ad¬ 
mitted, and no others. On the mysterious mount, 
where He was transfigured, these three were the only 
ones permitted to be the witnesses of His glory. In 
the garden of Gethsemane, these three were the only 
ones admitted into the secrets of His sufferings and 
sorrow. That this confidence is the mark of the most 
intimate friendship, the Saviour Himself declares, when 
he says to his disciples: “ I call you not servants; for 
the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I 
have called you friends; for all things that I have 
heard of my Father I have made known unto you.” 
According to this, confidence is a mark of peculiar 
and intimate friendship; and hence, because these 
three were so often admitted into his secret doings, 
they must have been regarded by him with peculiar 
love. Even among these three, one seems still to be 
singled out by Him, as yet nearer than the other two. 
This is John, “the beloved disciple,” the “disciple 
whom Jesus loved,” the one “which also leaned on 
His breast at supper!” There could be no meaning in 
designating him, as the disciple whom Jesus loved, if 
it was not generally known and understood that He 
loved him peculiarly, and that he was regarded as the 
Saviour’s favourite. 


IN THE TEACHINGS OP CHRIST. 


121 


This peculiar and particular friendship was not con¬ 
fined to the circle of the apostles; for even among the 
believers in general, we find, He had his special at¬ 
tachments. The Scriptures designate, as the objects 
of his special friendship, the retired family of Bethany. 
Not only is this indicated by His frequently retiring to 
that peaceful retreat, but we are plainly told: “Now 
Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.” His 
peculiar intimacy with these two sisters is also seen in 
the fact that they sent for him in all the simplicity of 
the most confident love, when their brother was sick; 
this they did, not without having had previous assurance 
that they would find in Him particular sympathy. How 
spontaneously and freely He mingles His tears with 
theirs! Even the Jews took knowledge of it, and ex¬ 
claimed : “ Behold how He loved him!” 

In what way, it is now asked, does this bear on the 
perpetuation of friendship and particular affection in 
the other world? We answer, the particular love thus 
manifested by Christ, proves that special affection is 
not improper or inconsistent in holy beings, for He was 
holy. His exercising such affections, and delighting 
in them, shows that they are fit to be continued in 
heaven. We can, moreover, not believe that He would 
form ties of a special kind, and thus by his example 
give encouragement to the formation of similar ones 
by his people, if they are to be broken by death. With 
such vanity we must not charge the Saviour, who is 
the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. In his heart 
nothing can live for a moment, which is not to live for 
ever. 

A still stronger feature in this testimony, is his tears 

11 


122 


IIEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


at the grave of Lazarus. “ He groaned in spirit and 
was troubled;” and while they stood at the door of the 
sepulchre, “ Jesus wept!” This proves that, to Him, 
the ties of earthly and kindred love were sacred and 
holy; that the breaking of them by death was an evil 
in itself, which demanded tears of sorrow; and that in 
repairing the evils of the fall, which brought death, 
this evil called also for reparation in the case of the 
saints. What can show more clearly that, though dead, 
Lazarus was still hound to them, and they to him? 
Here we see how the Saviour, by his own example, 
justifies our crowding with sorrowful hearts, and with 
undying affection, after our beloved friends, asking 
loudly, by the eloquence of our grief, that they may 
be restored to us again and we to them. 

The argument for heavenly recognition, from this 
scene of bereavement, becomes perfect by a glance at 
the interview between Jesus and Martha, and the way 
He consoled her, on her brother’s death. In deep dis¬ 
tress she says to him, “ Lord, if thou hadst been here, 
my brother had not died.” Now, how does He console 
her? He does not say, Weep not, for he is happy, 
though you see him not, and shall see him no more. 
No. He intimates to her in the tenderest manner, that 
what has now been a source of grief, shall once again 
be a source of joy. “ Thy brother shall rise again.” 
This would really have been no comfort to her, while 
her heart was torn and bleeding from his death and 
separation from her, if He had not intended thereby 
to inform her that he should rise again, to be her bro¬ 
ther, and if she had not so understood it. He did not 
tell her that He would immediately raise her brother, 


IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST. 


123 


so that it was not that thought which was brought be¬ 
fore her mind for comfort; she declares also that she 
already knew he would rise “ in the resurrection at the 
last day.” His answer shows, that He wished to assure 
her of the general truth, that He was Himself the re¬ 
surrection — that the believing dead lived in Him, and 
that the believing who lived should never die: that 
thus, in Him, existed even now that life which is the 
basis of ties which death does not sever; and when he 
should rise at the resurrection, he would rise in Him; 
and that, in Him, all ties are eternally secure. It 
would be difficult to'see why He should tell her in the 
way of comfort that her brother should rise again, if 
it was not by way of assuring her of the renewal of 
such ties beyond death. He would assure her that 
“he is not dead but sleepeth.” He would tell her not 
to mourn hopelessly, but to temper her grief with the 
thought that in the case of those who are united in 
Him, there continues a union, through Him, unaffected 
by death; and that even the gloomy night of a short 
separation is made light in the joyous hope of an end¬ 
less life. 

Not only did our Saviour thus hallow and sanction 
special friendship by His example, but He constantly 
urged it upon all his followers. He enjoined it upon 
all to cultivate love towards each other, as a necessary 
preparation for the heavenly kingdom. He declares it 
to be the fulfilling of the law, and the crowning point 
of Christian perfection. How can we, and why should 
we, believe that a feature of Christian character such 
as this, will ever be obliterated ? that Christianity 
teaches us to love our friends as we would otherwise 


124 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


not have been able to love them, but forbids us to be¬ 
lieve that such love is intended to be eternal ? 

If particular attachments are to die at death, never 
to be revived again in heaven, it is strange that our 
adorable Saviour should manifest such a particular 
concern for His mother, when He hung upon the cross, 
as to commend her to His “ beloved disciple.” Strange 
also, that in imitation of his example, the experience 
of hundreds of saints in dying have found the cords 
of kindred love drawing tighter, even to the seeming 
distress of their last hours. This certainly is no sign 
that love is dying, but rather proclaims its strength in 
death, and is a final and almost unutterably strong as¬ 
surance that the waters of death cannot quench it, but 
that it lives in peaceful and steady triumph amid the 
“ swellings of Jordan.” 

This being the nature of Christ’s kingdom of love 
on earth, such the ties formed in it, and such the 
friendships and affections which it begets and culti¬ 
vates, we have the strongest reason to believe that 
these shall continue unbroken through death. To 
strengthen still more this belief, we must remind the 
reader that, according to the teachings of Christ, this 
kingdom is essentially the same in heaven as on earth. 
His kingdom is one; part on earth and part in heaven. 
Christ is its head and king, “ of whom the whole family 
in heaven and earth is named.” It is all but one family, 
one body, pervaded by one life and one love. 

The saints on earth and all the dead, 

But one communion make; 

All join in Christ, their living head, 

And in his grace partake. 


IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST. 


125 


He Himself is present on both sides of death. When 
on earth, he could call Himself “ the son of man who 
is in heavenand now, being in heaven, he can say, 
“ Lo! Iam with you alway, even to the end of the 
world.” Here time and space can make no separation: 
so that, whether in the church on earth or in the church 
in heaven, all are alike in Him; and consequently, their 
relations to each other are not in the least changed. 
The death of a friend is just as when, at a feast, one 
passes into another chamber into which we may in time 
follow him, and find him there, as we knew him before. 
They pass away from earth behind the veil of our 
mortal sight, and there live on as before. Those faces 
of love which beam around us like stars in the gloom 
of this life, grow daily fewer, and soon we too shall 
fade away into the morning light of a brighter heaven. 

Thus star by star declines, 

Till all are passed away, 

As morning high and higher shines, 

To pure and perfect day; 

Nor sink those stars in empty night, 

But hide themselves in heaven’s own light. 

When we shall all be over, we shall live on in His eter¬ 
nal kingdom together, with the same attachment to 
Christ and each other, only purer than here; but we 
shall no more tremble in the cheerless prospect of se¬ 
paration by death : for there they die no more ! 

II. Not only does a view of Christ’s kingdom in this 
world encourage and warrant us in the belief of hea¬ 
venly recognition, but we learn also to believe it from 
what He says of heaven, as the future inheritance of 
the saints. 

11 * 


126 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


Whenever the Saviour alludes to the heavenly world, 
it is always a world in its social features resembling 
this, except that it is holy and free from all ills. We 
do not get the idea, in reading the representations of 
heaven in the Gospels, that human ties must there be 
set aside, or that we shall not continue to be human 
in all our feelings as here. In short, under the Sa¬ 
viour’s teachings, we feel ourselves, together with all 
the scenery of earth, both physical and social, trans¬ 
ferred to a pure, perfect, peaceful and eternal world, 
where God, angels and saints dwell together, as in a 
family — and this is heaven. 

Such, for instance, is the case in that incomparably 
touching passage in Christ’s farewell address to his 
disciples, in which he comforts them on their short se¬ 
paration. “ In my Father’s house are many mansions: 
if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to pre¬ 
pare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place 
for you, I will come again and receive you to myself; 
that where I am, there ye may be also.” Here the 
sad disciples are pointed to a “ Father’s house,” con¬ 
taining many mansions—here is the idea of a heavenly 
family, the members of which have all returned from a 
strange land, and now live together amid all the hal¬ 
lowed social endearments of an eternal home. This is 
the place which He prepares for them. This place, 
he says, I prepare for you — that is, the same place is 
for all of you, that ye , all together, may be with me 
where I am. They shall, therefore, be together there, 
together with Him, and consequently together with 
each other, as the children of one family in their Fa¬ 
ther’s house. We may well wonder how all this can 


IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST. 127 

take place without a mutual recognition ! Shall they 
be eternally together, as children in a family, and not 
know each other, and without the revival of their for¬ 
mer connections on earth ? How” can they be with 
the Saviour, know Him, have intercourse with Him, 
and not be reminded of earth and each other ? His 
looks, His words, His wounds, their relations to Him— 
all, all would restore their mutual knowledge of each 
other. To suppose that there would be no recognition, 
is to suppose that they had lost every social feature of 
their original nature—that they had lost and forgotten 
their origin, their identity, and become beings entirely 
new; in which case, their salvation could mean nothing 
to them; and they could not feel their relation to 
Christ to be that of those who had been redeemed by 
Him from the earth. 

The Saviour has also set forth the heavenly enjoy¬ 
ments under the figure of a feast. “ I say unto you, 
that many shall come from the east and west, and shall 
sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the 
kingdom of heaven.” Matt. viii. 11. In the parallel 
passage in Luke xiii. 28, it is added: “ and all the 
prophets.” That this is spoken of the heavenly world, 
the whole context shows; for the patriarchs were al¬ 
ready in the future life; and this meeting is put in 
contrast with the “ outer darkness,” where are heard 
the weepings and wailings of those that are “ thrust 
out.” Here then Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the 
prophets, are represented, not only as sitting together, 
but as engaged in social intercourse as at a feast, where 
old and familiar friends meet, and where new acquaint¬ 
ances are formed. Here others are said to come from 


128 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


the four quarters of the earth, to sit down with these, 
at this social feast. The passage could mean nothing, 
did it not mean that these patriarchs and prophets 
knew each other, and that those who came to sit with 
them knew them also, or were made acquainted with 
them; and, in this holy festival, introduced into their 
happy society. The idea of sitting and feasting toge¬ 
ther leads us naturally and irresistibly to this conclu¬ 
sion. Here then is recognition and heavenly acquaint¬ 
ance. 

As in the cases upon which we have already remark¬ 
ed, so also in this, the most valuable testimony we re¬ 
ceive from this passage in favour of this doctrine, is 
that it represents heaven as a scene of social life, ana¬ 
logous to that on earth — that in this celestial commu¬ 
nion are seen all the warm and familiar social accom¬ 
paniments which are associated with the intercourse 
of dear friends in this life. This is common to all the 
Saviour’s allusions to the heavenly place, state and 
society. It is, beyond doubt, rather superstition than 
reverence, which leads us to think of the heavenly life 
as so far removed from'all the affinities of human life, 
that we feel a sacred awe at the very thought of trans¬ 
ferring into it any of our human ideas and feelings. 
The Saviour’s representations and allusions, as we see, 
do not, in the least, encourage this cold and unearthly 
abstraction. The heaven, which He causes to rise be¬ 
fore our hopes, is one with which our human ideas and 
feelings can most sweetly sympathize, and towards 
which we are drawn with warm human, though holy 
desires, as a home where, what is human in us, shall 
not be destroyed, but elevated, sanctified, and perfect- 


IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST. 


129 


ed. It is this feature of the Saviour’s teachings, it 
seems to me, more than any one passage, or class of 
passages, that gives us encouragement and warrant to 
believe that we shall there meet again our friends and 
pious kindred, who were joined with us in Christ upon 
earth, and with holier affections renew and continue 
the social joys begun in the communion of saints be¬ 
low. Would this be a bliss too tame for heaven? Well 
may we ask— 

Is friendship then unfit for heaven 1 Would love— 

That holy impulse which in Jesus dwelt, and streamed 
From Him into the souls of those who touched 
His loving heart—would it pollute the place I 
If that which buds in grace, is not to bloom 
In bliss, and thou canst prove it so, say on! 

This passage not only permits us to believe that we 
shall see and know our former friends and acquaint¬ 
ances, but also confirms in us the hope, so fondly che¬ 
rished by us, of seeing in the heavenly world all the 
illustrious of earth, who lived in previous ages of the 
Church, and whom we have not seen in the flesh. We 
shall sit down at the celestial feast, with the patriarchs 
and prophets — with the eminent and excellent — with 
holy Fathers, Martyrs, and Reformers. This will be 
an unspeakable pleasure — this is a most animating 
hope ! We have heard of them, we have been benefited 
by them; the rays of their bright and holy influence 
have come down to us through the living history of the 
Church — by faith we have sought to place around us 
their bright examples, as patterns for our imitation; 
and we have earnestly sought to be like them, as they 


130 


HEAVENLY KECOGNITION 


were like Christ. What joy will it he to see them, and 
sit down in their society in the blessed feastings of the 
heavenly world. What a reverend and illustrious com¬ 
pany will that be! What an element of heavenly feli¬ 
city, to meet the great and good of all ages, and all 
lands, together in glory ; to hear from their own lips 
the trials and triumphs of the Great Kingdom in their 
day ! The heart of Socrates, at his death, bounded 
with joy at the thought of meeting and conversing with 
Orpheus, Homer, Hesiod, Palemedes, Ajax, and all 
others who had maintained the cause of truth and rec¬ 
titude, and of exploring the wisdom of Ulysses and 
Sisyphus, and the hero of the siege of Troy. Should 
not our hearts leap into much higher raptures at the 
thought of meeting Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, 
David, Paul, John, Polycarp, Cyprian, Augustine, 
Aquinas, and all those who in more modern times have 
brightened the firmament of the Church with a galaxy, 
where each distinct star is lost in the blaze of all! — 
and then to sit with these in the eternal kingdom of 
Jesus Christ! Is this a low idea of heavenly felicity ? 

III. We find proof in favour of the doctrine of future 
heavenly recognition from the Saviour’s representations 
of the final judgment. 

When Peter, as the voice of the disciples, asks what 
their reward shall be for having left all to follow Him, 
the Saviour carries their minds forward to the time 
when He shall sit upon the throne of His glory, and 
says: “Verily, I say unto you, that ye which have 
followed me in the regeneration, when the Son of man 
shall sit in the throne of His glory, ye also shall sit upon 
twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” 


IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST. 


181 


Here He promises to the apostles a distinguished place 
in the heavenly kingdom, where they shall sit together 
as judges. As judges, sitting together for the purpose 
of counselling, consulting and comparing judgments, 
they must, in the nature of the case, know each other. 
A bench of judges, unknown to each other, would be a 
strange anomaly indeed. And shall not those who are 
judged know them as the apostles ? In Luke xxii. 30, 
where the parallel passage is recorded, the description 
of their social condition is still more extended and 
familiar; there it is added, “ That ye may eat and 
drink at my table in my kingdom.” 

The offices which the apostles are said to fill also 
plainly and necessarily involve a recognition which 
must extend far beyond their own circle. “ Whatever 
may be the nature of their office, or in whatever man¬ 
ner it may be exercised, it must include the knowledge 
of individuals , and of their relation to the present 
world. In other words, the apostles must know the 
persons submitted to their jurisdiction to be the twelve 
tribes of Israel; and it is equally plain that the 
Israelites must, on the other hand, be aware that their 
judges are the twelve apostles. But if this be admitted, 
what should hinder the individuals of either party 
from becoming known to one another ? And, in the 
face of such evidence, on what ground can the belief 
of a general recognition amongst friends be reasonably 
called in question?”* 

In the 25th chapter of Matthew, the Saviour gives 
a graphic scene of the final judgment, when the nations 
shall be gathered before Him, and when He shall se- 


* Kerr. 



132 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


parate one from another as a shepherd divideth the 
sheep from the goats. The saints shall be placed on 
His right hand, and the sinners on the left. Then He 
shall say to the saints : “ Come ye blessed of my Fa¬ 
ther, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the 
foundation of the world.” Then he gives them the 
reasons why they are to receive this blessed reward. 
“ For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was 
thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and 
ye took me in : naked, and ye clothed me : I was sick, 
and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto 
me.” At this the saints are represented as being sur¬ 
prised, and they ask, “ Lord, when was this ?” as though 
they would say, We do not remember that we did this 
to you — thou wast not on earth when we were there— 
we did not at any time come into personal contact with 
you, for we never saw thee in the days of thy flesh. 
“ Then shall the King answer, and say unto them : 
Yerily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it 
unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have 
done it unto me.” Here, then, those brethren who had 
been hungry, thirsty, strangers, naked, sick, and in 
prison, and who in this condition had shared the kind 
charities of those whom the-Saviour is now inviting to 
their reward, as the blessed of their Father, are repre¬ 
sented as standing in the company, and the adorable 
Saviour, as if passing His hand toward them, says ye 
have done it to these. These, then, were standing by 
the side of their benefactors. Did they not know them ? 
Certainly. For the Saviour directs the attention of 
those about to receive their reward, to these persons, 
and reminds them of their charitable acts towards 


IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST. 133 

them while they were upon the earth, for the very pur¬ 
pose of showing them the reason why they are now ad¬ 
dressed as the blessed of His Father, and why they are 
now invited to enter into the joys of their Lord. They 
could not feel the propriety of this reward — which it 
is the Saviour’s object to make them feel — if they did 
not remember their earthly relations to these, in whose 
persons He regards himself as having been blest by 
them, and the remembrance of their former earthly re¬ 
lations could not fail to result in a recognition. There 
stood the poor disciple, who had received a cup of cold 
water, by the side of the Christian brother who had 
given it to him! There stood the once hungry and 
shivering disciple, and by his side is the one who had 
fed and clothed him. There is the martyr who, while 
in prison awaiting his end, had received the consoling 
visits of the brother who now stands by his side, on 
the right hand of the Judge — both in full view of the 
joys of their Lord, into which they are soon to enter 
in company. Oh 1 the reward of doing the smallest 
good to the very least of the saints ! Oh ! the joy of 
meeting those in heaven whom it was in our power to 
bless on earth ! What mutual bliss is his who did good, 
and his who received it. In the bosom of the one is 
the remembrance of a kind act; and in the bosom of 
the other are the swellings of joyful gratitude towards 
a benefactor. This — oh this, is a part of heaven ! 

Here, again, we must remark, how at home, amid 
these scenes brought before us in both the above pas¬ 
sages, are all our human ideas and sympathies. We 
can enter into them with all the familiarity and warmth 
of mind and heart, which belong to our present con- 
12 


134 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


sciousness. We almost see the tear of gratitude in the 
eye of the brother blest; and the holy blushes of him 
who on earth sought to do his sweet charities in modest 
secrecy. Still humble, he will not at first recognize in 
himself the one who has fed the hungry, clothed the 
naked, visited the sick, and housed the stranger. We 
can almost see the whole company moved with the 
warm glow of human, yet holy affections and emotions. 

Such are the saints in heaven, human still. Such 
are the scenes of heaven, enlivened with all the hal¬ 
lowed, familiar and endearing accompaniments of 
earthly life and society. Even angels, who mingle 
with the saints around the throne, are not devoid of 
human sympathies, as appears from many Bible in¬ 
stances of the manner of their intercourse with the 
saints on earth. Those angels who, in the palmy pa¬ 
triarchal times, stood in the shade of a tree at the door 
of Abraham’s tent — whose “feet he washed” — who 
eat of his “ morsel of bread” — of his “ cakes on the 
hearth,” of “ butter and milk,” and “calf tender and 
young”—these social spirits will feel at home sitting 
down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, with all the 
prophets, and with us, at those holy festivities in the 
spacious “many mansions” of our Father’s house. It 
is this, appearing so often and so naturally in the Sa¬ 
viour’s representations of the heavenly kingdom, which, 
more than all else, assures us that we shall find that 
happy place and state to be a living perpetuation of 
the social feelings of earth, in all the human tender¬ 
ness which now endears them to us. 

IV. Besides the considerations now offered, there 
are several passages of Scripture that appear in the 


IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST. 


135 


Saviour’s teachings, which afford proof in favour of the 
doctrine of heavenly recognition. 

There is a passage in Luke xvi. 9, the true meaning 
of which has hitherto been somewhat controverted; we 
shall therefore not insist upon it. It is this : “ Make 
to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteous¬ 
ness ; that when ye fail, they may receive you into 
everlasting habitations.” The meaning maybe — and 
it is evidently the easiest, most agreeable to the con¬ 
text, and not against reason or other Scripture — that 
those who have befriended the destitute by their chari¬ 
ties, and have thus made them their friends, shall by 
them be welcomed to the heavenly world. 

That the eminent of the earth shall be able to re¬ 
cognize each other is evident from the scene of the 
Saviour’s Transfiguration on Tabor. Matt. xvii. 1-5. 
“ And after six days, Jesus taketh Peter, James, and 
John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high 
mountain apart, and was transfigured before them: 
and His face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was 
white as the light. And behold, there appeared unto 
them Moses and Elias talking with Him. Then an¬ 
swered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for 
us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three 
tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one 
for Elias.” — Here we find Moses and Elias in company 
with each other, though they had lived in different pe¬ 
riods of the world, six hundred years apart, and had 
consequently not seen or known each other on earth. 
They must therefore have become acquainted with each 
other in heaven. Their interview with Christ and His 
disciples resulted, not only in a mutual acquaintance, 


136 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


but, on the part of the disciples, in a peculiar affection 
for these two venerable representatives of the Old Tes¬ 
tament economy, so that the disciples desired to retain 
them and remain in their company. “ Lord, it is good 
to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three taber¬ 
nacles ; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for 
Elias.” No doubt, through Christ’s talk with them, 
the disciple found out who they were; in the same 
natural w T ay acquaintances may be formed in heaven. 
One object in bringing the disciples and these heavenly 
visitors together on this glorious Tabor, was no doubt 
to assure the disciples of the fellowship of all saints 
in this kingdom, begun on earth and perfected in hea¬ 
ven. Moses, who represented the law; Elias, who 
represented the prophets; and the three apostles, who 
were the pillars of the New Testament Church, are 
here brought together, even in this world, to foretoken 
that all the saints of all these dispensations shall at 
last greet each other around a glorified Head and Re¬ 
deemer on the heavenly Tabor. This scene, even here ? 
is a heavenly scene; for the veil was dropped down 
around them, overshadowing them as with a bright 
cloud, enclosing all as in a holy place, and may, there¬ 
fore, be viewed as a fair specimen of heavenly inter¬ 
course. 

It is worthy of remark that Moses and Elias u spake 
of His decease which He should accomplish at Jerusa¬ 
lem.” This seems to have been the chief object of 
their visit. They had been looking on, from their 
celestial dwelling-place, as the Saviour prosecuted His 
mission on earth, with intense interest; and now, in 
view of the solemn and trying scene at its close on the 


IN THE TEACHINGS OE CHRIST. 


137 


cross, they appeared, no doubt, as an embassy for the 
encouragement both of Jesus and His disciples — to 
Him they spake in words which are not recorded — to 
them was afforded a glimpse of their and His heavenly 
glory, which seems to have impressed them deeply, for 
it long hovered before their minds alluringly, to ani¬ 
mate their faith. 2 Peter i. 17. Of course, whenever 
they thought of it, they associated with it the remem¬ 
brance of these glorified visitors, and the hope of meet¬ 
ing them again on high. The boon of retaining these 
venerable worthies in those tabernacles which they so 
affectionately proposed to build, could not be granted 
them; but who can doubt that better things than that 
shall be theirs ? — fellowship with them in a tabernacle 
“ not made with hands in the heavens ?” It is, more¬ 
over, plain that Moses and Elias knew in heaven what 
was transpiring on the earth, and that they took a 
deep interest in it. This shows that saints in heaven 
are able to keep up a continued acquaintance with the 
earth, sympathizing with those who are coming after 
them in all their trials and triumphs; and, when they 
die, are perhaps the first to welcome them at the gate 
of the city! 

In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 
xvi.), we have a scene from the other world which gives 
us a view of its social character, and of the social feel¬ 
ings of its inhabitants. It is so well known that we 
need not quote it. The rich man “ seeth Abraham afar 
off and Lazarus in his bosom.” Here then he saw and 
recognized both an ancient patriarch and one who lived 
at the same time he did on earth, whom he was wont 
to see as a beggar at his door. He supposes intercourse 
12 * 


138 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


to be possible, so natural' do all things in that world 
appear to him; and hence he asks Abraham to send 
Lazarus to him to administer cool water to his burning 
tongue. Abraham calls him “sow;” thus recognizing 
him as a Hebrew; reminds him of the earth, and of 
his mode of life there: “ Son, remember that thou in 
thy lifetime receivedst thy good things.” He reminds 
him of the difference of both their situations now from 
what they were on the earth: “Now he is comforted, 
and thou art tormented.” How could they thus com¬ 
pare their previous and present situations and condi¬ 
tions, without a continuation of that consciousness 
which necessarily implies recognition. He remembers 
also, and speaks of his “father’s house” upon earth. 
He thinks of his “five brethren,” and acknowledges 
himself as still sustaining that relation to them; for 
he does not say I had , but “ I have five brethren.” He 
still feels for them, and desires that Lazarus may be 
sent to them “ that he may testify unto them, lest they 
also come into that place of torment.” 

This, it is true, is a parable; but is a parable in¬ 
tended to mean nothing; or, is it not rather intended 
to make revealed truth plainer than could be done by 
plain precept ? That, therefore, which is its plainest 
meaning, is its true meaning. That it contains orna¬ 
mental imagery, which must not be run too closely in 
the interpretation, none will deny; but if all we have 
gathered from it in favour of our doctrine is taken as 
imagery, what, we ask, is left as substance ? 

It is true, also, that this is a scene partly in the 
place of the lost; and these feelings of interest in friends 
are attributed to one in torment. Yet Abraham and 


IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHEIST. 


139 


Lazarus, who are saints, do so enter into the whole 
scene, that we see the recognition to have been alike 
easy and natural to each. Moreover, if they know 
each other in hell, there is yet stronger reason to be¬ 
lieve that they will in heaven. For not only are the 
saints vastly more advanced in knowledge, but the ties 
of friendship which bind them together are much more 
intimate and durable. Their faculties are clearer, their 
hearts holier, their affections calmer and deeper, with¬ 
out any of the distortions and confusions of sin; we 
find, therefore, a thousand-fold more reason for expect¬ 
ing a renewal and continuation of former affections 
among the saints in light. 

From what has now been said concerning heavenly 
recognition in the teachings of the Saviour, we trust 
the faith of all who have followed us has been rendered 
more warm and implicit. We have sought our doctrine 
in the general tenor of that hope-inspiring life which 
flows from Christ and lives in His kingdom alike in 
earth and in heaven, warming the hearts of all who 
come under its power into a felt consciousness of a 
charity which never faileth, and leading them to hope 
as they could not dare to hope before. We have fol¬ 
lowed the flow of that life and immortality which was 
brought to light, not only by Him, but in Him, rather 
than any single passage, or class of passages. In other 
words, we have aimed by these exhibitions rather to 
make the reader feel that there will be a heavenly re¬ 
cognition, than to make him know it. It is, with Christ, 
as all his revelations are, not so much doctrine as life. 
We have therefore laboured that our hearts might teach 
our minds, rather than that our minds should teach our 


140 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


hearts. Or, scripturally, we have walked by faith more 
than by sight—and “ faith is the substance of things 
hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” 

We feel sure that he who stands in full sympathy 
with the inner life of faith — he who lives, moves, 
hopes and loves, in the broad flow of Christ’s universal 
life and kingdom, can be just as sure of eternal union 
with all saints in Him, as he is now sure of its exist¬ 
ence, and of his own union with Christ. He who lives 
only in the deep catholic life of faith need not be afraid 
that his deepest longings, and most ardent hopes, will 
die. Things must first become fragments, before they 
can perish. He that is one with the infinite and eternal 
will realize whatever he finds it in his heart to hope 
for; and, to such an one, says the word of truth, “Ac¬ 
cording to thy faith, be it unto you.” 

From these considerations we feel free to encourage 
every one who mourns over broken ties, with the con¬ 
soling words of the Saviour, which are themselves 
general, and may here safely be taken in their most 
general application : “ Blessed are they that mourn: 
for they shall be comforted.” That affection for the 
pious dead which is cherished by all, and most of all 
in the hearts of those whose souls are purest, and whose 
piety is deepest, seems for its full comfort, ardently to 
ask for the restoration of the object of its devotion, 
even amid the bliss of heaven. In the tame but touch¬ 
ing language of the pious bishop Maut— 

There is a void in lorn affection’s heart, 

Which yearns to be supplied. On God’s high will 
Though it repose submissively, yet still 
Of those, who bore in its regards a part, 

The cherished forms it holds, as in a chart 


IN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST. 


141 


Depicted, hoping He may yet fulfil 
Their restitution. Pardon it if ill 
Lurk in that hope, Great Father! True thou art; 
Thou sayest, the just shall bliss in fulness prove, 
And, what thou sayest, thy bounty will provide: 
And yet meseems the blissful souls above, 

The sense of earth’s sweet charities denied, 
Might feel a craving in those realms of love, 

By angel hosts and patriarchs unsupplied. 


142 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


CHAPTER VII. 


3tontnlt[ JUrngntiintt mtinttg tljB Slpnstks. 


Prophets, priests, 

Apostles, great reformers, all that served 
Messiah faithfully, like stars appear 
Of fairest beam : round them gather clad 
In white, the vouchers of their ministry— 

The flock their care had nourished, 

Fed and saved. 

Pollock. 

There was nothing abstract, or purely spiritualistic, 
in the ideas of the Apostles, in regard to another life. 
They regarded man in religion, as he is actually in na¬ 
ture, as composed of body as well as soul, and only 
complete in the living union of both. They believed 
in the resurrection of the body, and made this faith 
prominent in all their teachings: indeed the sum and 
substance of what they announced was, “ Jesus and 
the resurrection” — Jesus the ground of the resurrec¬ 
tion, and his people the subjects of it; in this great 
truth all truths centered, and from it all truth radiated. 
The Saviour’s resurrection was, to them, the sweet and 
sure pledge of an endless life. To convince ourselves 
of this, we need only refer our minds to all those 




AMONG THE APOSTLES. 


143 


passages in which the resurrection of Christ and of the 
saints is spoken of. 

They had seen the Saviour, after His resurrection, 
clothed in a body as tangible to their senses as their 
own — a body, which could be seen and felt. Luke xxiv. 
They saw Him also go up into heaven with that body. 
Acts i. They expected, therefore, after their own re¬ 
surrection, to live with Him again in their own bodies; 
and however much these bodies might be changed in 
their glorification, as to their incorruptibility, honour, 
power, and spirituality, they did not imagine that in 
their general appearance they would be essentially 
different from what they are now. They expected, 
therefore, that in the future world they would retain 
all those marks and characteristics of individuality by 
which they were here distinguished and known. Just 
as the seed that is sown, though it seem to perish, 
ripens at last into new seed exactly like that which 
perished, so that every seed gets its own body again; 
so, “ the body that shall be,” will be like the body that 
now is, and will continue in a deep sense the same 
body. 

To their conceptions, then, the future world was as 
tangible as this — the future life a living continuation 
of this — and its social condition analogous to what it 
is here, only more elevated, pure, and complete. The 
kingdom which they were labouring to extend, was one 
which, in their view, joined them and all saints livingly 
together in Christ as members in a body. This union 
they believed would continue through death. Hence, 
when they spake of their hopes, it was in plural lan¬ 
guage. We are saved by hope — we have a building 




144 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


of God, eternal in the heavens — we shall bear the 
image of the heavenly — we shall he caught up toge¬ 
ther with them in the clouds — and so we shall ever be 
with the Lord. All this shows that they thought of 
the heavenly kingdom as being an inheritance upon 
which they expected to enter, not as individuals, but 
as a body of brethren in Christ, already joined in the 
power of an endless life, and an endless love, in the 
church on earth. 

They also believed that as soon as one was partaker 
of Christ’s grace and life, and entered the fellowship 
of the saints in the church, that he was then already 
in present and eternal fellowship and sympathy with 
all the saints on earth and in heaven. They had no 
fears of any intervention which would interrupt or 
frustrate this fellowship. The church, in their minds 
and hearts, was not two families, one on earth and one 
in heaven, which they expected only finally to be 
united; but, in Him it w T as now one family, united by 
life-ties, which stand in no hindering affinities with 
time and space — “the whole family in heaven and 
earth.” Hence the apostle says to those Hebrew 
Christians, who had entered the fellowship of the saints 
in Christ—“Ye are come”—not ye shall hereafter 
come; but now, having entered the family of Christ 
on earth, you are one also with those in heaven—“ Ye 
are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the 
living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innu¬ 
merable company of angels, to the general assembly 
and Church of the First-Born, which are written in 
heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits 


AMONG THE APOSTLES. 145 

of just men made perfect, and to Jesus the Mediator 
of the new covenant.” Ileb. xii. 22-24. 

Such was their idea of the future world; in such a 
living connection did they believe themselves to stand 
with it; and such was their conception of the nature 
of that bond which united them to Christ and to each 
other, in this life and in the next. We may therefore 
confidently expect to find, in the teachings of the apos¬ 
tles, some allusions by which we may discover their 
belief in the heavenly recognition among saints. Such 
allusions there are. 

There is a hint on this subject in the passage, Col. i. 
28. “ Christ in you, the hope of glory: whom we 

preach, warning every man, and teaching every man 
in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect 
in Christ Jesus.” Here the apostle professes to feel 
it to be his duty, as a minister having the charge of 
souls, not only to warn and teach them, but also to 
“present” every one at last perfect in Christ to God. 
This presenting we must take in the same sense as that 
passage of the Saviour is to be taken: “those that 
thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost.” 
He expected to have an eye upon them, and to feel 
concerned for them, to the end of their life; and he 
would only be discharged of, his responsibility to them 
by presenting them perfect at the judgment. In that 
day, then, he expected to recognize them, as those 
which once belonged to his charge, single them out, 
and lead them, as fully redeemed through his ministry, 
to Christ. How could this be done without knowing 
them ? 


13 



146 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


A similar passage runs thus: “We are your re¬ 
joicing, even as ye also are ours in the day of the 
Lord Jesus.” 2 Cor. i. 14. He reminds the saints of 
Corinth of the mutual help and happiness which they 
had enjoyed together, and assures them that this will 
one day he to them a source of mutual rejoicing. When 
will this mutual joy take place ? The answer is, “ in 
the day of the Lord Jesus” — which is evidently the 
day of judgment. This implies that, in that final 
meeting they will know each other; if not, how could 
they rejoice together ? 

The doctrine of heavenly recognition is involved in 
the passage: “ Knowing, that he which raised up the 
Lord Jesus, shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall 
present us with you.” 2 Cor. iv. 14. From the con¬ 
text it is plain that the apostle refers to their persecu¬ 
tions at Philippi, from which he writes, and of their 
sufferings in consequence. He intimates to the saints 
at Corinth, that these troubles may even bring them 
to their death; but this, he would say, is not to he 
dreaded; for it will neither destroy nor separate them 
from each other, or from him; for “ he which raised 
up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and 
shall present us with you .” 

Still more conclusive on this subject is the apostle’s 
language to the saints of Thessalonica, whom he, by 
his ministry, had brought into the faith and fold of 
Christ. “ For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of 
rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our 
Lord Jesus Christ at his coming? For ye are our 
glory and joy.” 1 Thess. ii. 19, 20. There can here 
he no mistake as to the time when the apostle expects 


AMONG THE APOSTLES. 


147 


to have these saints as his joy and his glory; for it is 
expressly mentioned — “in the presence of onr Lord 
Jesus Christ at his coming ”— in the last judgment. 
That they shall then be with him is his hope, even 
though he should see them on earth no more. This is 
already his joy, for he is glad in the prospect of such a 
meeting at last. He expects this meeting to be an 
honour to him, though he at present suffer shame, for 
they are his “crown.” He was instrumental in “turn¬ 
ing them to righteousness,” and now he knows that 
“in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his 
coming,” they will shine in his crown of rejoicing “as 
the brightness of the firmament,” and “as the stars 
for ever and ever.” He had gone forth weeping, 
“bearing precious seed,” but then he “shall doubtless 
come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with 
him.” That this text ought to be taken as a proof of 
future recognition, is the opinion of the learned Dr. 
Macknight. We quote his words: “The manner in 
which the apostle speaks of the Thessalonians, shows 
that he expected to know his converts at the day of 
judgment. If so, we may hope to know our relations 
and friends then. And, as there is no reason to think 
that in the future life we shall lose those natural and 
social affections, which constitute so great a part of 
our present enjoyment, may we not expect that these 
affections, purified from every thing animal and terres¬ 
trial, will be a source of our happiness in that life like¬ 
wise ?” 

If any thing more is necessary to show that the 
apostle looked forward with joy to a meeting with his 
converts in heaven, we may refer to the context, which 


148 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


joins in urging this meaning upon the passage quoted. 
He speaks of his absence from them, and of his great 
desire to see them again. “ But we, brethren, being 
taken from you for a short time in presence, not in 
heart.” He had a “great desire” to see their face, 
and “endeavoured” to come to them; “but Satan 
hindered him,” and he was not now certain whether 
they should ever meet, for they were in “ tribulation,” 
“affliction and distress.” Chap. iii. 3. How these 
would end none could tell. Perhaps they would end 
in death; but in that case, they looked forward still 
with joy to the day of the Lord’s coming, when they 
should meet and rejoice together. 

Paul, exhorting his “beloved” among the Philip- 
pians to faithfulness, says — “that I may rejoice in 
the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, nor 
laboured in vain.” Phil. ii. 16. He wishes, in the 
day of Christ, to meet them, so that he may “ rejoice” 
over them, and see, in their salvation in heaven, that 
he has not “laboured in vain.” Equally strong, in 
favour of the doctrine of a mutual meeting in heaven, 
between Paul and his converts, is the passage in 
2 Thess. i. 7—“And to you, who are troubled, rest 
with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from 
heaven with his mighty angels.” Here again he refers 
to the final day, and says to them in reference to it: 
“ To them which trouble you God will give as a recom¬ 
pense ‘tribulation;’ but to you who are troubled,” he 
will give “rest with us.” After the storms of life, 
with all the wrath of their enemies, shall have harm¬ 
lessly blown over them, they will all meet, and rest to- 


AMONG THE APOSTLES. 


149 


gether, as vessels after a tempestuous voyage, in the 
haven of celestial peace. 

Is it a joy too low for saints in heaven, thus to 
meet, know, and love ? What joy on earth is so pure 
and sweet as to bless others, or to be blest and feel 
grateful for good received ? How much more — how 
unspeakably more and purer must the joy be, which 
those feel in heaven, who have laboured, prayed and 
wept together on earth, when they are at last safely 
landed together in realms of endless bliss! 

Such, Christian pastor, is thy heart’s delight, 

To serve thy God, and see thy people share 

His service, led by thee : with them how bright 
The joy to come, let holy Paul declare; 

A joy, a glory, and a crown of light, 

Which kings might envy, and exult to wear ! 

The doctrine of heavenly recognition comes clearly to 
view in Paul’s words of comfort to the Thessalonian 
Christians on the death of their friends. “I would 
not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them 
which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others 
which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died 
and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus 
will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by 
the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and re¬ 
main unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent 
them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall 
descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of 
the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the 
dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive 
and remain shall be caught up together with them in 
the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall 
13* 


150 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one 
another with these words.” 1 Thess. iv. 13-18. 

Let it be kept in mind that these are intended to be 
words of comfort: u Wherefore comfort one another 
with these words.” They were written to those who 
sorrowed “ concerning them which are asleep”—their 
dear friends who had died. Why did they sorrow and 
mourn for them? Not because they feared that they 
would not rise again; for they were not ignorant of 
the doctrine of the resurrection. This is plain from 
his telling them that they should not mourn for their 
dead as others, the heathen, “ which have no hope”— 
as though he had said you have hope, mourn not like 
those who have none. Like Martha, they knew that 
their friends should rise in the resurrection at the last 
day. It is evident then, that though they believed in 
a resurrection just as we do, yet like we, they mourned 
and sorrowed on account of the absence of their dead, 
under a feeble faith lest they should not see them 
again, though they should rise from the dead. Hence 
we see that the apostle supposes the existence of their 
belief in the resurrection; he does not announce this 
truth to them. He teaches the order, and the results, 
of the resurrection, and not that there shall be one. 

In comforting them, then, he goes on to show that 
their dead shall not only rise, but also that they shall 
be joined together after they have risen; for “ them 
also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.” 
Not only you, but them also. “ With him”—they will 
be in company with Christ when he shall come to judge 
the world; and, seeing Him, you shall also see them 
which he shall bring with him. “ For this we say, we 


AMONG THE APOSTLES. 


151 


which are alive and remain unto the coming of the 
Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.” Though 
we, who are alive, are now divided from those asleep, 
and would thus seem to be better off, and have an ad¬ 
vantage over them, yet there will be none in reality, 
for both we and they shall be together again before we 
finally enter into the heavenly life. “ For the Lord 
himself shall descend, and the dead in Christ shall rise 
first.” Before we or Christ shall leave the earth, the 
dead whom you mourn shall rise. “ Then ” — when 
they have risen — “ we which are alive and remain 
shall be caught up together with them .” “ And so shall 
we” —that is, both them and we — “be ever with the 
Lord.” Seeing, then, Christ will come thus and raise 
our dead, and take us “together with them,” where 
“ we shall ever be with the Lord,” why should we sor¬ 
row like those who have no hope of this kind ? Rather 
let us “ comfort one another with these words.” 

If the apostle had not intended by these words of 
comfort more than merely to give them assurance that 
their dead should rise, he would have concluded with 
saying, ‘so you see your dead shall rise/ instead of 
saying as he does, “ so shall we ever be with the Lord.” 
Then, too, he would have ended with the words, “ the 
dead in Christ shall rise first;” but, instead of this, he 
follows those who sleep in Jesus after they have risen— 
thus, “ then” —after they have risen — “we which are 
alive and remain shall be caught up together with him 
in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air.” Then he 
ends the whole with the sweet inference which contains 
exactly the consolation they needed — “ and so shall we 
be ever with the Lord.” They ask not by their present 



152 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


tears, shall our dead rise ? this they already knew; 
but shall we see them, and be with them again, after 
they have risen ? To this question the apostle’s con¬ 
cluding inference is the direct and satisfactory answer: 
“ So shall we be ever with the Lord. Wherefore com¬ 
fort one another with these words.” So clearly and- 
conclusively does this consolatory passage teach the 
doctrine of heavenly recognition. 

The apostle John, when rapt in holy vision on the 
Isle of Patmos, “ looked, and behold, a door was open¬ 
ed into heaven.” He saw things, in that glance into 
the future life, which warrant us abundantly to infer 
the truth of the doctrine of heavenly recognition. 
Then was there a remembrance of the earth, for he 
heard them speak of the u Lamb slain” on Calvary. 
He sees those who “ came out of great tribulation,” 
connecting thus their present condition with their his¬ 
tory of sorrow upon the earth. Rev. vii. 13, 14. It 
is remarkable in reference to our doctrine, that the 
elder encourages John to ask questions in regard to 
those whom he sees: “ And one of the elders answered, 
saying unto me, what are these which are arrayed in 
white robes, and whence came they ?” How naturally 
will it lead to recognition and acquaintance, if, when a 
saint of eminence and glory appears, we may feel it 
proper to ask, who is it ? and whence came he ? This 
John was encouraged to do — why may not we? 

We find, in this vision, that the saints in heaven 
remember and speak of the “ kindreds , and tongues, 
and people, and nations,” out of which they have been 
redeemed. Rev. v. 9. How could this be without a 
perpetuation of all the faculties necessary to recogni- 


AMONG THE APOSTLES. 


153 


tion ? Remarkable, also, is the passage, Rev. vi. 9-11, 
which we will quote in the way of paraphrase: “ And 
when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar 
the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, 
and for the testimony which they held.” They were 
therefore recognized as martyrs and confessors. “ And 
they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, 0 Lord, 
holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood 
on them that dwell on the earth.” Here is a recollec¬ 
tion of earth, and a knowledge of the present condition 
of those who had slain these martyrs. “And white 
robes were given unto every one of them; and it was 
said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little 
season, until their fellow-servants also and their bre¬ 
thren , that should be killed as they were, should be 
fulfilled.” This shows the continued interest which is 
kept up in heaven, on the part of the saints, in their 
brethren and fellow-servants upon the earth. We may 
well ask, if such acquaintance and friendly concern is 
kept up across the chasm of death, will it not be fully 
renewed, when once all are over on the eternal side ? 

We have reserved for the conclusion of this chapter 
the strong proof in favour of perpetuated friendship 
and heavenly recognition, derived from the nature of 
love, as exhibited in the teachings of the apostles. 

“ Charity never faileth.” The word charity is 
the same which is, in other places, translated love. 
Love never ends, is the meaning of it. It is here 
translated charity, because it has reference to that love 
which is directed by one person towards another, which 
is the proper meaning of charity. This love, between 
saint and saint, never fails — never ends. Much which 


154 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


the world calls love will of course end; because it rests 
on a false basis, and is not therefore really love. Some 
which professes to be love, rests on self-interest, and 
some on passion; this will pass away with the causes 
which produced it, like froth after the fermentation is 
over. Pure love, however, even between man and 
man, is a holy life, which has its ground in God, and 
its life in love to Him. If we really love a fellow-be¬ 
ing, it is because we love God, and because God loves 
us and the being which we love. Any thing short of 
this is “ of the earth earthy,” and will end in death, 
if not sooner. That this is the true idea of love is 
apparent from Scripture. “ Beloved, let us love one 
another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth 
is born of G-od , and knoweth God. He that loveth 
not, knoweth not God; for God is love. Beloved, if 
God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. 
If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his 
love is perfected in us. He that dwelleth in love, 
dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love 
made perfect. There is no fear in love; but perfect 
love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He 
that feareth is not made perfect in love. If a man 
say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar. 
For he that loveth not his brother, whom he hath seen, 
how can he love God, whom he hath not seen ? “By 
this we know that we love the children of God, when 
we love God.” 1 John iv. and v. 

Does this earnest sententious language mean any 
thing ? Alas ! how little is it regarded ! This is the 
pure philosophy and theology of love, cleansed from 
all the vapourings of human passion. It is not built 


AMONG THE APOSTLES. 


155 


upon social convenience, upon worldly prudence, upon 
fashionable cast, upon external beauty, upon a fleshly, 
blind, sentimental sympathy, nor upon a platonic ab¬ 
straction, which, like the music of the spheres, is much 
talked of, but which no one has ever seen. 

The law of heaven is love: and tho’ its name 
Has been usurped by passion, and profan’d 
To its unholy uses through all time: 

Still the eternal principle is pure. 

It has its ground in God, and its life in his love to us, 
and our love to Him. From this, it is evident, that no 
love to friends is real, except it has its foundation and 
source in love to Him. Love is the image of God in 
us, for “ God is loveso that if we dwell in love, we 
dwell in God, and his image dwells in us. Then we 
love as he loved, with an eternal affection; for his 
image in us can never perish. Whenever, therefore, 
true love binds hearts together, the same cord binds 
them also to God, which makes their union permanent; 
so that in this case they are really “ partakers of the 
divine nature.” This tie, being a divine tie, must last 
while God lasts — for ever ! This is an union of saints 
with each other in the life of Christ; and because He 
lives they shall live, being one with him in the power 
of an endless life, and of an endless love. This love 
never ends. 

Hence it is also said, “ charity beareth all things — 
endureth all things.” Lovely and appropriate in refer¬ 
ence to this point is the song of the spouse, in the Song 
of Solomon viii. 6, 7. “ Set me as a seal upon thine 

heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as 


156 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


death. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can 
the floods drown it.” 

That the apostle, in saying that love never faileth, 
has reference to its continuation in another life, is evi¬ 
dent from the context, where he plainly refers to the 
state of eternal perfection. In this world — so he 
argues — “we know in part, and we prophesy in part; 
hut when that which is perfect is come, then that which 
is in part shall be done away.” Here we are but as 
children, and all our faculties are imperfect; but when 
we become more perfect in the eternal state, we shall 
advance beyond our state of earthly imperfection. 
When we are once in heaven, and see face to face, and 
look no more at eternal things in the dim reflections 
of a dark mirror, there still “ abideth” the greatest of 
all our graces, which is “ charity.” If we believe, with 
some, that faith and hope, having fulfilled their mission, 
shall then cease, charity must still continue, or it would 
not be greater than these other graces. Or if we be¬ 
lieve, with others, that faith and hope will there also 
abide, then charity will also continue as the greatest 
of them. Thus remains 

Love the* golden chain that binds 
The happy souls above. 

Such is the nature of love; it is divine — the divine in 
us — the divine life uniting all to Christ, and each to 
all. It dies not. Most beautifully and truly does the 
poet Southey sing of the eternal nature of holy love. 
Most strongly does he reprove those who deny its con¬ 
tinuance after death. We quote it the more gladly, 


AMONG THE APOSTLES. 


157 


because of the touching manner in which he makes it 
bear on the heavenly recognition. 

They sin who tell us love can die; 

With life all other passions fly, 

All others are but vanity. 

In heaven ambition cannot dwell; 

Nor avarice in the vaults of hell; 

Earthly these passions of the earth, 

They perish where they have their birth; 

But love is indestructible. 

Its holy flame for ever burneth, 

From heaven it came, to heaven returneth ; 

Too oft on earth a troubled guest, 

At times deceived, at times opprest, 

It here is tried and purified, 

Then hath in heaven its perfect rest. 

It soweth here in toil and care, 

But the harvest time of love is there. 

Oh ! when a mother meets on high 
The babe she lost in infancy, 

Hath she not then, for pains and fears, 

The day of wo, the watchful night, 

For all her sorrows, all her tears, 

An over-payment of delight] 

Blessed, in this land of partings and tears, is this glo¬ 
rious hope. Those friendly looks of love which faded 
from our day of joy in death, as stars fade in the light 
of morning, are still shining on in heaven, though we 
see them not, radiant in the beams of eternal love. 
Inspired with the consoling hope that they shall shine 
on us again, when, beyond the night of the grave, the 
morning of an eternal day shall dawn upon us, we love 
and praise them still — smiling through our tears! 
Their sanctified images hover before the eyes of our 
14 




158 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


faith, as most delightful allurements. We think of 
them as holier, happier than we, and long to be like 
them. In the simplicity of childlike affection we think 
of them, and sing— 

Bright in that happy land 
Beams every eye; 

Kept by a Father’s hand, 

Love cannot die. 


AMONG THE CHRISTIAN FATHERS. 


159 


CHAPTER VIII. 


Iwimtltj JUragratimt annrag tip Christian /ntjprs. 


All the ancient and pious fathers agreed in this. St. Cyprian 
owns, that our parents, brethren, children, and near relations, ex¬ 
pect us in heaven, and are solicitous for our good. St. Jerome 
comforts a good lady on this account, that we shall see our friends, 
and know them. St. Augustine endeavours to mitigate the sorrow 
of an Italian widow with this consideration, that she shall be re¬ 
stored to her husband, and behold and know him.— Dr. Edwards. 

We reverence the early Christian Fathers as pious 
men, not as inspired men. We love to know their sen¬ 
timents on any religious subject, because they lived in 
the childlike age of Christianity, and drank at the 
fountain-head of revealed truth as well as of sacred 
tradition. We introduce their testimony here by way 
of keeping up unbroken the historical feature of our 
doctrine, that we may follow it in the life and love of 
the Church in all ages; and thus assure ourselves that 
we are neither waking up an old heresy nor begetting 
a new one. 

In speaking of the doctrine of heavenly recognition 
as held among the Jews, we rested an argument in its 
favor on the fact of their having a great desire to lie 




160 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


by the side of their kindred in death. The same is 
true of the early Christians. To bury their dead de¬ 
cently was considered an urgent religious duty: this 
their affectionate feelings towards them forbade them 
to neglect, and they always performed it with peculiar 
promptness and devotion. In the early church, the 
Christians often exposed themselves to the greatest 
danger to get the bodies of the martyrs out of the 
hands of their persecutors, that they might be decently 
buried. According to the testimony of Tertullian, 
collections were held in the church, which were devoted 
to the burial of the poor. To bury the poor and stran¬ 
gers, says Lactantius, is the last and greatest duty of 
love; and Augustine, says Stapfer, has written a whole 
book on the care and attention due to the dead. This 
was a peculiarity about them, which was so strikingly 
prominent as to attract the attention of Julian the 
Apostate; and it was even by him much admired and 
commended. In times of persecution they buried their 
dead secretly by night, because their persecutors denied 
to them that privilege, when they were aware of it.— 
See them !—affecting sight!—see them steal away, by 
the moon’s pale light, or rays of feebler stars, bearing 
as sacred the lifeless but precious remains of their be¬ 
loved dead! With the plaintive mourner in the Night 
Thoughts, — who, by persecutors, calling themselves 
Christians, was compelled by stealth, and in the night, 
to bury the body of his own daughter, — they could say 

“ With pious sacrilege a grave I stole.” 

The fact that the early Christians were prohibited 
from burying their dead as a 'punishment , proves that 


AMONG THE CHRISTIAN FATHERS. 161 

their persecutors considered this their tenderest point, 
and knew that in no other way could they afflict and 
pain them more. It seems, from this, that the desire 
sacredly and decently to dispose of the bodies of their 
dead, was their strongest passion: to this their hearts 
clung longest and last. For this, in the lovely spirit 
of Tobit of Old,* and of Old Mortality in more mo¬ 
dern days, they were willing, if need be, to brave dan¬ 
ger and death ! 

Not only did they thus safely and decently deposit 
the remains of their beloved dead, but they were also 
in the habit of frequently visiting the place where they 
lay; and in obscure and lonely catacombs, secretly 
and often by night, did they seek a kind of nearness 
and fellowship with them. From this custom they 
were often called, by their heathen contemporaries, 
“ the light-hating people.” By this daily contact and 
communion with the sacred and venerable remains of 
their ancestors, and the beloved relics of their kindred 
and friends, the fear of death was gradually made to 
give place to a strong desire to die, in order to rejoin 
the loved and gone before. This had, no doubt, much 
to do with begetting that general desire for martyrdom 
which caused it in early ages to be sought as a great 
boon. Their minds in those days of persecution turned 
instinctively away from the dark scenes of earthly trial 
and conflict, to those far-off and peaceful abodes to 
which their sainted friends had gone, “ where the wicked 
cease from troubling and the weary are at rest.” 

The early Christians had a holy horror for the prac¬ 
tice of burning the bodies of the dead, which was a 


14 * 


* Tobit i. 17-21, and ii. 1-9. 



162 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


custom at the time prevailing in the Roman empire. 
It was, n'o doubt, the doctrine of the resurrection of 
the body, and the belief in the perpetuation of its 
identity in another life, where it might again be recog¬ 
nized and known, which inspired them with disgust for 
a practice which seemed to indicate the belief that hope 
ought in no way to cling to these lifeless remains. Their 
tender and hopeful affection is beautifully seen in the 
conduct of the congregation of Smyrna, in reference 
to the body of Polycarp, their bishop, after he had 
suffered martyrdom: “We gathered up his bones,” 
was their affecting language, “ which are more precious 
than gold and jewels, and deposited them in a suitable 
place; and God will grant us to assemble there in joy 
and festivity, and celebrate the birth-day of his mar¬ 
tyrdom, in remembrance of the departed champion, 
and for the purpose of exciting and arming those whom 
the conflict is still awaiting.”* Who does not admire 
their simple and affectionate devotion to their pastor, 
who had not only taught them how to live for Christ, 
but who was willing also for their sakes and for Christ’s 
to seal his ministry with his blood ? Can we believe, 
that the affection which manifested itself so tenderly 
for his body, did not also follow his spirit beyond the 
grave, in the firm hope of a blessed and eternal reunion 
in heaven? 

It is also significant, in reference to this doctrine of 
heavenly recognition, as held among the early Chris¬ 
tians, that they associated the remembrance of the dead 
in many ways with religious feelings, religious services 
and ceremonies, and with religious hopes. Accordingly, 


* Neandeiv 



AMONG THE CHRISTIAN FATHERS. 


163 


their pious consciousness led them to desire the burial 
of their dead to be near the church. Hence it soon 
became customary to secure a piece of ground for a 
burial-place in connection with the church property, 
and directly around their place of worship, which was 
consecrated by religious solemnities as a sacred place 
of repose for those who slept in Jesus. This practice 
still continues. Here, then, the congregation of the 
dead was with the congregation of the living, in token 
of the eternal and indissoluble tie which binds together 
the living and the dead in one eternal fellowship in 
Christ. 

There was, as is beautifully remarked by the late 
and good Neander, very early, a “ Christian custom 
which required that the memory of departed friends 
should be celebrated by their relations, husbands, or 
wives, on the anniversary of their death, in a manner 
suited to the spirit of the Christian faith and the Chris¬ 
tian hope. It was usual on this day to partake of the 
communion under a sense of the inseparable fellowship 
with those who had died in the Lord. A gift was laid 
on the altar in their name, as if they were still living 
members of the church.” 

The same which is here said to have been done by 
individuals was, according to the same historian, also 
done by communities; which shows that it was a feel¬ 
ing that entered deeply into the general consciousness 
of that age. “While individual Christians and Chris¬ 
tian families celebrated in this manner the memories 
of those departed ones who were especially near to 
them by the ties of kindred, whole communities cele¬ 
brated the memory of those who, without belonging to 


164 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


their own particular community, had died as witnesses 
for the Lord. The anniversary of the death of such 
individuals was looked upon as their birth-day to a no¬ 
bler existence. Great care was bestowed in providing 
for their funeral obsequies, and the repose of their bo¬ 
dies, as the sanctified organs of holy souls, which were 
one day to be awakened from the dead and restored to 
their use under a more glorious form. On every re¬ 
turning anniversary of their birth-day (in the sense 
which has been explained) the people gathered round 
their graves, where the story was rehearsed of their 
confession and sufferings, and the communion was 
celebrated in the consciousness of a continued felloiv- 
ship with them , now that they were united with Him 
for whom, by their sufferings, they had witnessed a 
good confession.” 

Thus with pious and lonely delight did the bereaved, 
in the ancient church, cherish the memory of their 
sainted dead, and cling with fondness to the hope of 
meeting them again in a better world. The apparent 
separation which death had caused only made them 
more conscious of the necessity of a deeper tie, which 
the grave could not break : this tie they found in their 
mystical union with Christ, and by all the means which 
are intended to strengthen this union itself, they also 
sought to bind themselves more closely to the dead in 
Christ. 

The interested reader will thank us for quoting in 
full the beautiful testimony of Neander on this subject, 
in connection with a quotation from Cyprian. “As 
Christianity in its general influence did not tend to 
suppress but only to ennoble the natural feelings of 


AMONG THE CHRISTIAN FATHERS. 


165 


man; as it opposed itself generally, as well to the 
perverted education which would crush these natural 
feelings, as to the unrestrained expression of them in 
the rude state of nature; the same was its influence 
also in relation to mourning for the dead. From the 
first, Christianity condemned the wild, and at the same 
time hypocritical expressions of grief with which the 
funeral procession was accompanied, those wailings of 
the women who had been hired for the occasion, (mu- 
lieres prseficse;) yet it required no stoic resignation and 
apathy, but mitigated and refined the anguish of sor¬ 
row, by the spirit of faith and hope, and of childlike 
resignation to that eternal love, which takes, in order 
to restore what it has taken, under a more glorious 
form; which separates for the moment, in order to 
reunite the separated in a glorified state through eter¬ 
nity.” 

When multitudes at Carthage were swept away by 
a desolating pestilence, Cyprian said to his church: — 
“We ought not to mourn for those who are delivered 
from the world by the call of the Lord, since we know 
they are not lost, but sent before us; that they have 
taken their leave of us in order to precede us. We 
may long after them as we do for those who have sailed 
on a distant voyage, but not lament them. We may 
not here below put on dark robes of mourning, when 
they above have already put on white robes of glory; 
we may not give the heathens any just occasion to ac¬ 
cuse us of weeping for those as lost and extinct, of 
whom we say that they live with Grod , and of failing to 
prove by the witness of our hearts the faith we confess 
with our lips. We, who live in hope, who believe in 



166 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


God, and trust that Christ has suffered for us and risen 
again; we, who abide in Christ, who through him and 
in him rise again — why do we not ourselves wish to 
depart out of this world ? — or why do we lament for 
the friends who have been separated from us, as if they 
were lost ?”* 

Would it not increase the loveliness of our piety as 
well as enrich the sources of our consolations, if we, 
after these examples, communed more with the spirits 
of the dead in the element of a holy love? We feel 
bound, as Christians, to love all the saints among the 
living, and to seek their affectionate fellowship; but 
why, if 

“ Saints on earth, and all the dead,” 

make but one communion in Christ — why should we 
not love the dead, think of them, and long after their 
society as we do after those who have not yet crossed 
that narrow flood which divides 

“That heavenly land from ours]” 

Yes, we should love them still. Let us endeavour to 
hear by faith the sweet notes of their heavenly harp- 
ings, and catch the tender gleam of their eyes, as they 
look toward us in deep unutterable love, till we feel 
heaven drawing nearer to us, and ourselves drawing 
nearer to it. Thus did the ancient Christians, while 
they sat at the graves of those they had loved in life, 
and still loved in death, with “ childlike resignation to 
that eternal love which takes, in order to restore what 


* Neander’s Hist, of the Church, vol. i. pp. 338, 334. 



AMONG THE CHRISTIAN FATHERS. 167 

it has taken under a more glorious form; which sepa¬ 
rates for a moment, in order to reunite the separated 
in a glorious state through eternity.” 

At the close of his sermon on immortality, Cyprian 
breaks out in a touchingly beautiful passage, directly 
on the subject of the heavenly recognition : I translate 
it from the German, as quoted by Johann Repomuk 
Locherer, in his History of the Christian Religion and 
the Church. “ Precious to us will be the day that shall 
assign to each of us our place of abode, that shall re¬ 
move us hence and release us from the snares of earth, 
and bring us to Paradise in the heavenly kingdom. 
Who, finding himself in a strange country, does not 
earnestly desire to return to his Fatherland ? Who, 
about to sail in haste for his home and his friends across 
the sea, does not long for a^friendly wind, that he may 
the sooner throw his arms around his beloved ones? 
We believe Paradise to be our Fatherland: our parents 
are the patriarchs; why should we not haste and fly 
to see our home and greet our parents ? A great host 
of beloved friends awaits us there: a numerous and 
various crowd, parents, brethren, children, who are se¬ 
cure in a blessed immortality, and only still concerned 
for us, are looking with desire for our arrival. To see 
and embrace these — what a mutual joy will this be to 
us and them! What bliss, without the fear of death, 
to live eternally in the heavenly kingdom ! How vast, 
and of eternal duration, is our celestial blessedness! 
There is the glorious choir of the apostles — there the 
host of joyful prophets — there the innumerable com¬ 
pany of the martyrs, crowned on account of their vic¬ 
tory in the conflict of suffering. There in triumph 



168 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


are the pure virgins. There the merciful, who have 
fed and blest the poor, and, according to their Lord’s 
direction, have exchanged earthly for heavenly trea¬ 
sures, now receive their glorious reward. To these, 
dearly beloved brethren, let us hasten with strong de¬ 
sire, and ardently wish soon to be with them, and with 
Christ.” 

St. Ambrose, who flourished in the third century, in 
a funeral oration, in reference to the death of the em¬ 
peror Valentinian, says: “Let us believe that Valen- 
tinian is ascended from the desert, that is to say, from 
this dry and unmanured (inculto) place, unto those 
flowery delights, where being conjoined with his brother 
(Gratian) he enjoyeth the pleasures of everlasting 
life.” 

This same St. Ambrose, in one of his epistles, com¬ 
forts Faustinus on the death of his sister, thus: “Do 
not the carcasses* of so many half-ruined cities, and 
the funerals of so much land exposed under one view, 
admonish thee that the departure of one woman, al¬ 
though a holy and admirable one, should be borne with 
great consolation, especially seeing they are cast down 
and overthrown for ever; but she being taken from us 
but for a time , doth pass a better life there ?” 

In such like passages did the ancient Christian Fa¬ 
thers express their belief in the doctrine of a future 
recognition among the sainted dead. Such is the 
mellow and soothing voice of precious consolation, as 
it comes to us from pious bereaved hearts, over the 
waste of many centuries. These voices have acquired 

* He seems to allude to some calamity by war, fire, flood or storm, 
in which countries and cities were laid desolate. 



AMONG THE CHRISTIAN FATHERS. 


169 


a kind of venerable authority; and we listen to them 
with silent reverence, as we do to the words of grey¬ 
haired wisdom. Their preservation through so many 
ages best shows how congenial they are to the wants 
and wishes of the human heart. They have gathered 
around them a savor and an unction, which indicates 
an anointing from above. They are a living and prac¬ 
tical commentary, extending through all ages of the 
church, on that article of faith pronounced in deep and 
steady assurance by millions: “ I believe in the com¬ 
munion of saints.” 


170 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


CHAPTER IX. 


JSrittttnlg lUrngnitinu mining Cjpingtmts. 


Like the tower of David builded for an armory, whereon there 
hang a thousand bucklers, all shields of mighty men. 

Song of SoL , iv. 4. 

In one sense the testimonies we here present have 
only the weight of individual or private opinion, but 
in another respect they are more. There is strength 
in the agreement of so many. These men had the 
same love for truth as we have, the same motives to 
seek it, and the same interest in it when it is found. 
We may therefore be fully assured that they were as 
earnest and sincere in seeking the truth as we can 
possibly he. This certainly assists us in resting, with 
some assurance and confidence, upon the conclusions 
at which they have arrived. 

In looking at the belief of others on this subject, 
we feel also that we are not starting up a new doctrine, 
or pursuing a new hope. There is truth in the postu¬ 
late : what is true is not new, and what is new is not 
true. Especially is this true in reference to doctrines 
in religion. We feel, however, that we are not con- 




AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


171 


demned by this principle, when we find ourselves sup¬ 
ported in this belief by the wisest and best men in all 
ages and in all countries. We feel in hearing them 
that, in a certain sense, we “hear the church.” We 
feel convinced that an error could not have become so 
general, have lived so long, and have reigned without 
being questioned in so many bright and holy minds. 
The Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth, would not 
have suffered such a wide-spread and general defection 
from the truth. 

It will be seen farther that this is not the belief of 
any one single sect, or of a class of sects, but that it 
is the voice of the Church. Men of all creeds here 
express their belief in this doctrine. This gives it a 
lovely catholic feature. It is one of those truths which 
utters itself from the universal Christian mind and 
heart. It is broad as human wants and woes. Like 
the hope of heaven itself, it springs up in every heart 
which seeks that friendly and peaceful abode. 

Although what is here presented seems to be a chap¬ 
ter of fragments, yet we, believe it will be found that 
the general stream of our argument flows on in living 
connection through it. We desire that the testimony 
of the early church, which we have exhibited in the 
preceding chapter, may come down to us through these 
voices in an unbroken series of witnesses — each under 
the influence of the spirit of truth, but no one speaking 
of himself. In this chapter, the reader may imagine 
himself entering a spacious hall, illuminated by the 
wisdom of ages, in which the wise and good are speak¬ 
ing with each other and with him on this subject; here, 
while relaxing and regaling himself, new ideas will 


172 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


start up in his mind and new comforts in his heart. 
This chapter is “ like the tower of David builded for 
an armory, whereon there hang a thousand bucklers, 
all shields of mighty men.” 

SECTION I. 

ARGUMENTATIVE. 

I. Dr. Martin Luther. 

The following extract is part of a conversation which 
took place between Luther, Justus Jonas, Michael 
Celius, and the Counts of Mansfieldt, on Wednesday 
evening, February 17th, 1546, at Eisleben. He died 
next morning, the 18th, at 3 o’clock. It is said that 
during that evening which preceded his death “he 
spake many earnest words in relation to death and the 
eternal world.” The extract is taken from Luther’s 
Works, vol. viii., p. 384. Jena edition, 1562. 

“The same evening Dr. Luther made remarks on 
the question: Whether in the, future blessed and eter¬ 
nal assembly and church we shall know each other f 
And as we anxiously desired to know his opinion, he 
said: How did Adam do ? He had never in his life 
seen Eve — he lay and slept—yet, when he awoke he 
did not say, Whence did you come ? who are you ? but 
he said: “ This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of 
my flesh.” How did he know that this woman did not 
spring forth from a stone ? He knew it because he 
was full of the Holy Spirit, and in possession of the 
true knowledge of God. Into this knowledge and 
image we will, in the future life, again be renewed in 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


173 


Christ; so that we will know father, mother, and 
one another, on sight, better than did Adam and 
Eve.” 

II. Melancthon. Cruciger. Olevianus. Scaliger. 

“Melancthon,” says bishop Burgess, “a few days 
before his death, told Camerarius that he trusted their 
friendship should be cultivated and perpetuated in an¬ 
other world. Cruciger, another of the school of the 
Reformers, spoke, in his last hours, of meeting and re¬ 
cognition. Casper Olevianus,* a divine of Heidelberg, 
when his son had been summoned to see him before he 
should die, sent to him also the message, that 4 he need 
not hurry: they should see one another in eternal life.’ 
So Joseph Scaliger spoke of 4 soon meeting and em¬ 
bracing, no longer the subjects of age and infirmity.’ ” 
How precious is this testimony, in favor of this doc¬ 
trine of heavenly recognition; showing the power 
which the sweet social attractions of heaven exercised 
over these strong and earnest minds, in those stormy 
times ! The firmament of the church rolled in tempests, 
but through the darkness broke this soft light from a 
serener world upon their souls — the more precious at 
such a time. 


* Olevianus has the honor of sharing with Ursinus the authorship 
of the celebrated Heidelberg Catechism — the symbol of all the Re¬ 
formed churches in all lands and languages where the Reformed 
faith is held. 


15 * 



HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


174 

III. Thomas Becon, 

One of the English Reformers , A. T>. 1550. 

Phil. If your friends live in the fear of God, and 
depart in the Christian faith, they may be sure to come 
thither, where you shall be; even unto the glorious 
kingdom of God, where you shall both see them, know 
them, talk with them, and be much more joyful with 
them than ever you were in this world. 

Chris. Some doubt of that. 

Phil. Why so ? Shall the knowledge of God’s elect 
and chosen people be less in the kingdom of God than 
it is in this world ? We, being in this corruptible body, 
know one another when we see not God, but with the 
eye of faith; and shall we not know one another after 
that we have put off this sinful body, and see God face 
to face, in the sight of whom is the knowledge of all 
things ? We shall be like the glorious angels of hea¬ 
ven, who know one another; can it then come to pass 
that one of us may not know another ? Shall we be 
equal with the angels in other things, and inferior unto 
them in knowing one another? We shall know and 
see Christ as He is, who is the wisdom, image, and 
brightness of the heavenly Father; and shall the know¬ 
ledge of one another be hidden from us? We are 
members all of one body, and shall we not know one 
another ? 

We shall know our head, v which is Christ, and shall 
we not know ourselves ? We shall be citizens of one 
heavenly city, where continual light shall be, and shall 
we be overwhelmed with such darkness that we shall 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


175 


not see and know one another? They that in this 
world continue together in one place but for a season, 
know one another, and shall we, who for ever shall 
continue together, singing, praising, and magnifying 
the Lord our God, not know one another ? They that 
are in one household, and serve one lord and master, 
know one another in this world, and shall not we know 
one another, who in the kingdom of heaven whall con¬ 
tinually serve the Lord our God together, with one 
spirit and with one mind ? There is a certain know¬ 
ledge one of another here in the earth, even amongst 
the unreasonable and brute beasts, and shall our senses 
be so darkened in the life to come, that we being im¬ 
mortal, incorruptible, and like unto the angels of God, 
yea, seeing God face to face, shall not know one an¬ 
other? We shall know God as He is, and shall we not 
know one another ? Adam, before he sinned, being in 
the state of innocence, knew Eve so soon as God 
brought her unto him, and called her by her name; 
and shall not we, being in heaven, where we shall be 
in a much more blessed and perfect state than ever 
Adam was in paradise, know one another ? Shall our 
knowledge be inferior to Adam’s knowledge in para¬ 
dise ? 

When Christ was transfigured on Mount Tabor, his 
disciples, Peter, James, and John, did not only know 
Christ, but also Moses and Elias, who talked there 
with Christ, whom, notwithstanding, they had never 
seen nor known in the flesh. Whereof we may learn, 
that when we come to behold the glorious majesty of 
the great God, we shall not only know our Saviour 
Christ, and such as we were acquainted with in this 


176 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


world, but also all the elect and chosen people of God, 
who have been from the beginning of the world. As 
the holy apostle saith, ye are come to the mount Sion, 
and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jeru¬ 
salem, and to an innumerable company of angels, and 
to the general assembly and church of the first-born, 
which are written in heaven, and to God, the judge of 
all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and 
to Jesus the Mediator of the New Testament. When 
we are once come into that heavenly Jerusalem, we 
shall, without all doubt, both see and know all the holy 
and most blessed company of the patriarchs, prophets, 
apostles, and martyrs, with all others of the faithful. 
As we are all members of one body, whereof Jesus 
Christ is the Head, so shall we know one another, re¬ 
joice together, and be glad with one another. 

IV. Archdeacon William Paley. 

If this (Col. i. 28) be rightly interpreted, then it 
affords the manifest and necessary inference, that the 
saints in a future life will meet and be known again to 
one another: for how, without knowing again his con¬ 
verts, in their new and glorious state, could St. Paul 
desire or expect to present them at the last day ? 

V. Rev. Charles Drelincourt, Paris. 

Since God intends not to destroy those gifts and 
abilities, which he had bestowed upon us in this life, 
much less shall he abolish our knowledge, which is one 
of the brightest beams of glory. This knowledge shall 
be so far from diminishing or decaying, that it shall 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


177 


then increase more and more, until it comes to the 
highest perfection. As the air loseth nothing of its 
twilight at break of day, when the sun riseth over our 
heads, but it rather loseth all obscurity and darkness 
which the presence of the sun draw T s away, until it he 
perfectly enlightened; likewise our understanding shall 
lose nothing of that light and perfection which it re¬ 
ceives now from the breaking of the day of God’s 
grace; but as the Sun of Righteousness riseth upon it 
more and more in joy and salvation, it shall perfectly 
lose all darkness and ignorance by degrees, until it be 
fully enlightened. From hence we may probably con¬ 
clude, that we shall know all the persons in heaven 
whom we have known here on earth. For if the glori¬ 
fied shall remember the wicked, who have tormented 
them, they must needs remember all believers, who 
have bestowed on them their alms, and done them 
good. 

I am, therefore, more than fully persuaded, that we 
shall know in heaven our parents and our friends, and 
generally all the persons whom we have known here 
below. 

VI. Rev. Dr.’ Edwards. 

It is reasonable to believe that the saints shall know 
that they had such and such a relation to one another 
when they were on earth. The father shall know that 
such a one was his child; the husband shall remember 
that such a one was his wife; the spiritual guide shall 
know that such belonged to his flock; and so all other 
relations of persons shall be renewed and known in 
heaven. The ground of which assertion is this, that 


178 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


the soul of man is of that nature that it depends not 
on the body and sense, and, therefore, being separated, 
knows all that it knew in the body. And for this rea¬ 
son it is not to be doubted that it arrives in the other 
world with the same designs and inclinations it had 
here. So that the delights of conversation are con z 
tinued in heaven. Friends and relations are familiar 
and free with one another, and call to mind their former 
circumstances and concerns in the world, so far as they 
may be serviceable to advance their happiness. 

VII. Dr. George Christian Knapp, 

Professor of Theology in the University of Halle . 

According to the representations contained in the 
holy scriptures, the saints will dwell together in the 
future world, and form, as it were, a kingdom or state 
of God. They will there partake of a common felicity. 
Their enjoyment will doubtless be very much heighten¬ 
ed by friendship, and by their confiding intercourse 
with each other. We must, however, separate all 
earthly imperfection from our conceptions of this hea¬ 
venly society. But that we shall there recognize our 
former friends, and shall be again associated with them, 
was uniformly believed by all antiquity. This idea was 
admitted as altogether rational, and as a consoling 
thought, by the most distinguished ancient philosophers. 
Even reason regards this as in a high degree probable ; 
but to one who believes the holy scriptures it cannot 
be a matter of doubt and conjecture. 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


179 


VIII. Rev. John Dick, D. D., 

Professor of Theology to the United Session Church. 

It has been asked whether, in this blessed abode, the 
saints will know one another ? One should think that 
the question w T as unnecessary, as the answer naturally 
presents itself to every man’s mind; and it could only 
have occurred to some dreaming Theologian, who, in 
his airy speculations, has soared far beyond the sphere 
of reason and common sense. Who can doubt whether 
the saints will know one another ? What reason can 
be given why they should not ? Would it he any part 
of their perfection to have all their former ideas obli¬ 
terated, and to meet as strangers in the other w T orld ? 
Would it give us a more favourable notion of the as¬ 
sembly in heaven, to suppose it to consist of a multitude 
of unknown individuals, who never hold communication 
with each other; or by some inexplicable restraint are 
prevented, amidst an intimate intercourse, from mutual 
discoveries ? Or have they forgotten what they them¬ 
selves w r ere, so that they cannot reveal it to their asso¬ 
ciates ? What would be gained by this ignorance no 
man can tell; but we can tell what would be lost by it. 
They would lose all the happiness of meeting again on 
the peaceful shore, those from whom they were sepa¬ 
rated by the storms of life; of seeing among the tro¬ 
phies of divine grace many of whom they had despaired, 
and for whose sakes they had gone down with sorrow to 
the grave; of knowing the good which they had been 
honoured to do, and being surrounded with the indiyi- 
duals who had been saved by means of their prayers, 
and instructions and labours. How could those whom 


180 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


he had been the instrument of converting and building 
up in the holy faith, be to the minister of the gospel a 
crown of joy and rejoicing in the day of the Lord, if 
he did not recognize them when standing at his side ? 
The saints will be free from the turbulence of passion, 
but innocent affections will remain; and could they 
spend eternal ages without asking, Are our children 
here ? Are our still dearer relatives here ? Have our 
friends, with whom we took sweet counsel together, 
found their way to this country, to which we travelled 
in company till death parted us ? 

IX. Kev. George Burgess, 

Bishop of Maine . 

That it should ever have been doubted whether the 
inhabitants of the spiritual world recognize each other 
in that abode, is but an example of the wide influence 
of unbelief, suggesting the strangest dimness wherever 
the scriptures had not spoken in the most explicit 
words, even though the obvious reason for which the 
words had not been spoken was, that to speak them 
was needless. Why should not the departed recognize 
and be recognized ? How can their very nature and 
being be so utterly changed that they should be able 
to exist in the same world, to remember, and to be a 
general assembly, a church, a society, without recogni¬ 
tion ? If the future life is the sequel and result and 
retribution of the present, how can recognition fail? 
Not a step can we proceed, not a conception can we 
form, not a statement of divine revelation can we 
clearly embrace, in our contemplations of the future 
life, without admitting or involving the necessity of 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


181 


mutual recognition as well as mutual remembrance and 
affection. Were Moses and Elias unknown each to the 
other ? Did the martyrs below the altar utter the same 
cry, without knowing the history of their companions, 
each a stranger amongst strangers? Was Abraham a 
stranger to Lazarus, or was Lazarus seen and known 
by the rich man only? Could those who watch for 
souls render an account for them, With joy or grief, 
and yet not know their doom ? Could Christian con¬ 
verts be the “glory and joy” of an apostle at the 
coming of the Lord, if he knew them not ? Could the 
patriarchs be seen in the kingdom of God by none but 
those who should be shut out ? All proceeds on the 
supposition of just such knowledge there as here. It 
is probable, indeed, that the human soul must always 
clothe itself with form, even in the separate state; and 
such a form would bear the same impress which had 
been given to the mortal body. There is no extrava¬ 
gance in the wish of Doctor Randolph to know Cowper 
above from his picture here, or in the same thought as 
expressed in the verses of Southey on the portrait of 
Heber. 


X. Rev. William Jay. 

It has been asked, shall we know each other in hea 
ven ? Suppose you should not; you may be assured 
of this, that nothing will be wanting to your happiness. 
But oh! you say, how would the thought affect me 
now ! There is the babe that was torn from my bosom; 
how lovely then, but a cherub now! There is the 
friend, who was as mine own soul, with whom I took 
sweet counsel, and went to the house of God in com- 
16 


182 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


pany. There is the minister — whose preaching turned 
my feet into the path of peace — whose words were to 
me a well of life. There is the beloved mother, on 
whose knees I first laid my little hands to pray, and 
whose lips first taught my tongue to pronounce the 
name of Jesus! And are these removed from us for 
ever ? Shall we recognize them no more ? — Cease 
your anxieties. Can memory be annihilated? Did not 
Peter, James, and John know Moses and Elias ? Does 
not the Saviour inform us that the friends, benefactors 
have made of the mammon of unrighteousness, shall 
receive them into everlasting habitations ? Does not 
Paul tell the Thessalonians that they are his hope, 
and joy, and crown, at the coming of our Lord Jesus 
Christ ? 

XI. Rev. J. W. Nevin, D. D., 

Professor of Theology in the Seminary of the German 
Reformed Church. 

That the saints in glory shall continue to know those 
whom they have known and loved on earth, seems to 
me to flow necessarily from the idea of their immor¬ 
tality itself; for this cannot be real, except as it in¬ 
cludes personal identity or a continuation of the same 
consciousness. It is moreover a strictly catholic idea, 
the sense of which has been actively present to the 
mind of the church, through all ages, in her doctrine 
of the “ Communion of Saints.” This regards not 
merely Christians on earth, but also the sainted dead; 
according to the true word of the hymn : “ The saints 
on earth and all the dead, but one communion make.” 
But communion implies a continuity of reciprocal know- 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


183 


ledge and affection. If death sundered absolutely the 
new consciousness of the believer from the old, there 
could be no real spiritual conjunction of this sort be¬ 
tween the living and the departed members of Christ’s 
body. There is a dangerous tendency in the religious 
world at the present time towards a false view of this 
relation, by which in fact the dead are taken to be so 
dissociated from the living, as to have no part farther 
in the onward movement of Christ’s kingdom. But 
this is an error full as bad, to say the least, as the old 
superstition of invoking the saints and of praying for 
the dead. The communion of saints now noticed has 
regard of course to the order of things between death 
and the resurrection. But if we are required to be¬ 
lieve that disembodied spirits in the middle state still 
retain their interest in those they have left behind 
them in the mortal state, how shall we question their 
power of recognition afterwards in the more perfect 
resurrection state, when those who are now in two dif¬ 
ferent states, (and still in communion,) shall be all 
gloriously brought together again in one ? 

SECTION II. 

ALLUSIONS IN WHICH THIS DOCTRINE IS TAKEN FOR 
GRANTED. 

I. John Calvin. 

When Calvin was near his end, Farel, his early and 
faithful friend, and now a venerable sage of eighty 
years, desired once more to see him in the flesh. Cal¬ 
vin dissuaded him — though he did nevertheless after¬ 
wards come from Neufchatel to Genoa, on foot, to see 


184 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


his friend once more, and for the last time. In his 
letter to Farel, in which he takes his final leave from 
him, as he then supposed, he says: “ God bless you, 
best and noblest brother; and if God permits you still 
longer to live, forget not the tie that binds us, which 
will be just as agreeable to us in heaven as it has been 
useful to the church on earth.” 

II. Rev. Dr. John Tillotson. 

Archbishop of Canterbury . 

When we come to heaven we shall meet with all 
those excellent persons, those brave minds, those inno¬ 
cent and charitable souls, whom we have seen, and 
heard, and read of in ;the world. There we shall meet 
many of our dear relations and intimate friends, and 
perhaps with many of our enemies, to whom we shall 
then be perfectly reconciled, notwithstanding all the 
warm contests and peevish differences which we had 
with them in this world, even about matters of religion. 
For heaven is a state of perfect love and friendship. 

III. Rev. Richard Baxter. 

I must confess, as the experience of my own soul, 
that the expectation of loving my friends in heaven 
principally kindles my love to them on earth. If I 
thought that I should never know them, and conse¬ 
quently never love them after this life is ended, I 
should in reason number them with temporal things, 
and love them as such. But I now delight to converse 
with my pious friends, in a firm persuasion that I shall 
converse with them for ever; and I take comfort in 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


185 


those of them that are dead or absent, as believing I 
shall shortly meet them in heaven, and love them with 
a heavenly love that shall there he perfected. 

IV. Bishop Hall. 

Thou hast lost thy friend: — say, rather, thou hast 
parted with him. That is properly lost which is past 
all recovery, which we are out of hope to see any more. 
It is not so with this friend thou mournest for; he is 
but gone home a little before thee; thou art following 
him; you two shall meet in your Father’s house, and 
enjoy each other more happily than you could have 
done here below. 


Y. Dr. Doddridge. 

Let me be thankful for the pleasing hope that though 
God loves my child too well to permit it to return to 
me, he will ere long bring me to it. And then that 
endeared paternal affection, which would have been a 
cord to tie me to earth, and have added new pangs to 
my removal from it, will be as a golden chain to draw 
me upwards, and add one farther charm and joy even 
to paradise itself. Was this my desolation ? this my 
sorrow ? to part with thee for a few days, that I might 
receive thee for ever, (Philem., ver. 15,) and find thee 
what thou art ? It is for no language but that of hea¬ 
ven, to describe the sacred joy which such a meeting 
must occasion. 

VI. Melvill. 

It is yet but a little while, and we shall be delivered 
from the burden and the conflict, and, with all those 
16 * 


186 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


who have preceded us in the righteous struggle, enjoy 
the deep raptures of a Mediator’s presence. Then re¬ 
united to the friends with whom we took sweet counsel 
upon earth, we shall recount our toil only to heighten 
our ecstacy; and call to mind the tug and the din of 
war, only that, with a more bounding throb, and a 
richer song, we may feel and celebrate the wonders of 
redemption. 

VII. Kev. J. F. Berg, D. D. 

Go where we will, we find the sentiment that friend¬ 
ship is perpetuated beyond the grave. It is enshrined 
in the heart of our common Christianity. The pure 
unsophisticated belief of the vast majority of the fol¬ 
lowers of Christ is in union with the yearnings of na¬ 
tural affection, which follows its object through the 
portals of the grave into the eternal world. What but 
this causes the Christian parent, in the dying hour, to 
charge his beloved children to prepare for a reunion 
before the throne of the Lamb ? He desires to meet 
them there, and to rejoice with them in the victory 
over sin and death. The widow bending in bitter be¬ 
reavement over the grave of him whom God has taken, 
meekly puts the cup of sorrow to her lips, with the 
assured confidence that the separation wrought by 
death is transient, and that they who sleep in Jesus 
shall together inherit the rest that remaineth for the 
people of God. Thus the wormwood and the gall are 
tempered by the sweet balm of hope, and heaven wins 
the attraction which earth has lost. Tell me, you who 
have seen the open tomb receive into its bosom the sa¬ 
cred trust committed to its keeping in hope of the first 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


187 


resurrection — you who have heard the sullen rumbling 
of the death-clods as they dropped upon the coffin-lid 
and told you that earth had gone back to earth, when 
the separation from the object of your love was realized 
in all the desolation of bereavement, next to the thought 
that ere long you should see Christ as he is and he like 
Him, was not that consolation the strongest which as¬ 
sured you that the departed one whom God had put 
from you into darkness, would run to meet you when 
you crossed the threshold of mortality, and with the 
holy rapture to which the redeemed alone can give 
utterance, lead you to the exalted Saviour, and with 
you bow at his feet, and cast the conqueror’s crown 
before Him. 

SECTION III. 

CONSOLATORY. 

I. Ulrich Zwinglius, 

The Swiss Reformer. 

There you may hope to see the society, the assembly, 
and the dwelling together, of all the holy, wise, faith¬ 
ful, heroic, firm, and virtuous, who have lived since the 
beginning of the world. There you shall see the two 
Adams, the saved and the Saviour. There you will see 
Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, 
Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Samuel, Phineas, Elijah, Eli¬ 
sha, Isaiah, and the mother of God of whom he has 
prophesied. There you will see David, Hezekiah, 
Josiah, John the Baptist, Peter, Paul, &c. There you 
will see yours who have gone before you, and all your 
forefathers who have departed this life in the faith. In 


188 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


a word, no virtuous person, no holy mind, no believing 
soul, has lived from the beginning of the world, or shall 
yet live, that you shall not there meet with God. 

II. Bunyan’s dying words. 

Weep not for me but for yourselves. I go to the 
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will no doubt 
receive me, though a sinner, through the medium of 
our Lord Jesus Christ, where I hope we shall ere long 
meet, to sing the new song and remain happy for ever, 
in a world without end. Amen. 

III. Rev. William Dodd, D. D. 

This is the joy, this is the grand source of consola¬ 
tion under the loss of friends, — we shall meet again ! 
They are delivered from their trial, while we are left 
behind a few weary years longer; and behold, the time 
of our departure also cometh, when we shall follow our 
friends, and he for ever with them and with the Lord! 
There shall the enraptured parents receive again their 
much-loved child; there shall the child, with transport, 
meet again those parents in joy, over whose graves, 
with filial duty, he dropt the affectionate tear ; there 
shall the disconsolate widow cease her complaints; and 
her orphans, — orphans now no more,. — shall tell the 
sad tale of their distress to the husband, the father; 
distress even pleasing to recollect, now that happiness 
is its result, and heaven its end! There shall the soft 
sympathies of endearing friendship he renewed; affec¬ 
tionate sisters shall congratulate each other, and faithful 
friends again shall mingle converse, interests, amities, 
and walk high in bliss with God himself. 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


189 


IV. George Herbert. 

My hope is that I shall shortly leave this valley of 
tears, and be free from all fevers and pain; and which 
will be a more happy condition, I shall he free from 
sin, and all the temptations and anxieties that attend 
it; and this being past, I shall dwell in the New Jeru¬ 
salem ; dwell there with men made perfect; dwell where 
these eyes shall see my Master and Saviour Jesus; and 
with him see my dear mother, and all my relations and 
friends. But I must die, or not come to that happy 
place. 

V. Dr. Philip Doddridge. 

I wonder at the weakness of our minds, that they 
should be so much depressed with this short separation; 
for these very scriptures assure us we shall meet with 
them again; for they and we being with the Lord, we 
must be with each other. What a delightful thought 
is this! when we run over the long catalogue of excel¬ 
lent friends, which we rashly say we have lost, to think, 
each of us, I shall be gathered to my people; to those 
whom my heart still owns under that character, with 
an affection which death could not cancel, nor these 
years of absence erase. 

VI. Lavel. 

Let those mourn without measure, who mourn with¬ 
out hope. The husbandman does not mourn, when he 
casts his seed into the ground. He expects to receive 
it again, and more. The same hope have we, respect¬ 
ing our friends who have died in faith. “ I would not 





190 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


have you ignorant,” says Paul, “ concerning them who 
are asleep, that ye sorrow not as others who have no 
hope; for if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, 
even so also them who sleep in Jesus will God bring 
with him.” He seems to say: ‘Look not on the dead 
as lost. They are not annihilated. Indeed, they are 
not dead . They only sleep; and they sleep to wake 
again.’ You do not lament over your children or 
friends, while slumbering on their beds. Consider 
death as a sleep from which they shall certainly awake. 
Even a heathen philosopher could say that he enjoyed 
his friends, expecting to part with them; and parted 
with them, expecting to see them again. And shall a 
heathen excel a Christian in bearing affliction with 
cheerfulness ? 

■VII. Dr. Thomas Chalmers. 

Tell us if Christianity does not throw a pleasing 
radiance around an infant’s tomb ? And should any 
piarent who hears us feel softened by the remembrance 
of the light that twinkled a few short months under 
his roof, and at the end of its little period expired, we 
cannot think that we venture too far, when we say that 
he has only to persevere in the faith and in the follow¬ 
ing of the Gospel, and that very light will again shine 
upon him in heaven. The blossom which withered here 
upon its stalk, has been transplanted there to a place 
of endurance; and it will then gladden that eye which 
now weeps out the agony of an affection that has been 
sorely wounded; and, in the name of Him who, if on 
earth, would have wept along with them, do we bid all 
believers present to sorrow not even as others which 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


191 


have no hope; hut to take comfort in the hope of that 
country where there is no sorrow and no separation. 

VIII. Rev. John Newton. 

I need not say to myself, or my dear friends who 
are in the Lord, Quo nunc alibis in loco f We know 
where they are, and how employed. There I humbly 
trust my dear Mary is waiting for me, and in the Lord’s 
own time I hope to join with her and all the redeemed 
in praising the Lamb, once upon the cross, now upon 
the throne of Glory. 

IX. Fenelon. 

If we are sorrowing under a misfortune, of which 
this world affords no alleviation, the death of those 
most dear to us, let us humbly offer to our God the 
beloved whom we have lost. And what, after all, have 
we lost ? — the remaining days of a being, whom we 
indeed loved, but whose happiness we do not consider 
in our regret; who, perhaps, was not happy here, but 
who certainly must be much happier with God; and 
whom we shall meet again , not in this dark and sorrow¬ 
ful scene, but in the bright regions of eternal day, and 
partake in the inexpressible happiness of eternity. 

He has placed the friends whom he has taken from 
us in safety, to restore them to us in eternity. He has 
deprived us of them, that he may teach us to love them 
with a pure love, a love that we may enjoy in his pre¬ 
sence for ever; he confers a greater blessing than we 
were capable of desiring. 



192 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


Very soon they who are separated will be reunited, 
and there will appear no trace of the separation. They 
who are about to set out upon a journey, ought not to 
feel themselves far distant from those who have gone 
to the same country a few days before. Life is like a 
torrent; the past is but a dream; the present, while 
we are thinking of it, escapes us, and is precipitated 
into the same abyss that has swallowed up the past; 
the future will not be of a different nature; it will pass 
as rapidly. A few moments, and a few more, and all 
will be ended; what has appeared long and tedious, 
will seem short when it is finished. 

X. Rev. John James, D. D., 
Prebendary of Peterborough . 

It is no dreaming fancy to expect, that in another 
world we shall preserve our identity — shall know and 
be known even as in this. Let the mourner in Sion 
continue “patient in well-doing;” “looking for and 
hasting to the coming of the Lord,” when shall begin 
the reunion of kindred spirits, whom in this world 
death had separated. Parent to child, sister to bro¬ 
ther, husband to wife, friend to friend, shall then be 
restored — a blessed communion of saints, whom nor 
sin nor sorrow shall sever more. 

XI. Rev. Thomas Smyth, D. D. 

Can we not with David rejoicingly declare, 6 They 
cannot come to us, but we can go to them V Yes, we 
can go to them. “ They are not lost, but gone before.” 


AMONG THEOLOGIANS. 


193 


There in that world of light, and love, and joy, they 
await our coming. There do they beckon us to ascend. 
There do they stand ready to welcome us. There may 
we meet them, when a few more suns or seasons shall 
have cast their departing shadows upon our silent 
grave. Then shall our joy be full and our sorrows 
ended, and all tears wiped from our eyes. 

Death separates, but it can never disunite those who 
are bound together in Christ Jesus. To them, death 
in his power of an endless separation, is abolished. It 
is no more death, but a sweet departure, a journey 
from earth to heaven. Our children are still ours. We 
are still their parents. We are yet one family — one 
in memory — one in hope — one in spirit. Our children 
are yet with us, and dwell with us in our sweetest, 
fondest recollections. We too are yet with them in the 
bright anticipations of our reunion with them, in the 
glories of the upper sanctuary. We mingle together 
indeed no more in sorrow and in pain, 

But we shall join love’s buried ones again 

In endless bands, and in eternal peace. 

XII. Rev. S. S. Schmucker, D. D., 
Professor of Theology , Gettysburg, Pennsylvania . 

And how could Abraham’s bosom, the region of the 
blessed, be other than a state of enjoyment to the 
Christian ? There we shall see Lazarus, and be com¬ 
forted with him ! There we shall see father Abraham, 
and rest from all our sorrows, reclining on his bosom! 
There we shall see the ancient patriarchs and prophets ! 
IT 





194 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


There we shall see Jeremiah, who wept over the deso¬ 
lations of Israel; and Daniel, who, in defiance of the 
king and all his nobles, prayed three times a day to 
his God, and whom his God saved from the mouth of 
the lions! There we shall find the apostles, and Lu¬ 
ther, and Calvin, and Zwinglius, and all that host of 
worthies of whom the world was not worthy, who, 
amid a wicked and perverse generation, maintained 
their fidelity to the end, and received not the mark of 
the beast. How can the place of departed spirits fail 
to be a place of joy to the Christian ? for there he shall 
meet all those pious relatives and friends whom heaven 
indulgent gave to him awhile, and heaven mysterious 
soon resumed again. 


AMONG THE POETS. 


195 


CHAPTER X. 


J&im tthj lUrngitito annrag tjp $nrte. 


Poetry has been to me its own “ exceeding great reward it 
nas soothed my afflictions; it has multiplied and refined my enjoy¬ 
ments; it has endeared solitude; and it has given me the habit of 
wishing to discover the Good and the Beautiful in all that meets 
and surrounds me. Coleridge. 

That is a significant and instructive fable, which the 
ancients record, of Orpheus the god of Poetry and 
Song. His wife Eurydice, according to the story, died 
of the bite of a serpent. Her husband was so affected 
by grief for her loss, that he followed her into the 
shades, whither her spirit had gone. As music and 
poetry were natural to Orpheus, he employed their 
powerful influence in the infernal regions with such 
success as to move even Pluto and Proserpine to com¬ 
passion, and induced them to restore to him his be¬ 
loved wife. Thus the injury w’hich the serpent inflicted 
was repaired, and even death and hell were induced to 
let go their hold, charmed by the song of Orpheus. Is 
not this a prophecy of another charmer, who heals the 
poisonous wounds of another serpent, and turns back 
the captivity of death into a life everlasting ? Not less 
significant is the end of the fable according to which 
Orpheus concluded his life on earth by being changed 






196 HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 

into a swan, which is the cause of its sweet notes in 
dying. We know of another, from whose death saints 
and angels have learned their sweetest song, which, 
like the notes of the dying swan, has lingered upon 
the lips of the saints in the hour of death in unearthly 
strains. 

This is a fable, hut it may show us what a powerful 
and soothing influence poetry and song were known to 
exert in all ages and among all nations. Though it 
will not bring our loved ones hack, as did the notes of 
Orpheus, it may teach us whither they have gone, and 
encourage us to look for them again, — and this it will 
do, not in cold abstract logic, hut in the sweet persua¬ 
sive language of the heart. It may he to our hearts 
what the warm breath of the south is to flower-buds— 
it can cause them to open in love and hope towards 
those whose warm affections seem for a time to have 
retired from us into the silent mysteries of the tomb. 
It can soothe us, as with a soft friendly voice, while 
we continue to weep along life’s checkered way. Who 
has not felt its power ? The wisest and the best have 
crowned their wisdom with its garlands, and have sat, 
like children, at its feet in the quiet hours of life. 
Even the Bible is not ashamed of it. It hangs its 
heavenly colourings around the visions of the prophets, 
and mingles its strains with the public and private de¬ 
votions of the saints. 

“ The great end of Poetry is to instruct, at the same 
time that it gives pleasure. By the decorations of 
elegance, and the harmony of numbers, it is well calcu¬ 
lated to win its way both to the heart and understand¬ 
ing,—like a still and placid stream which beautifies and 


AMONG THE POETS. 


197 


enriches all around it. Hence, from the earliest ages, 
when the first hymn of praise, as it were the song of 
the morning star, was borne on the wings of the cheru¬ 
bim to the throne of glory, Poetry has ever been a 
principal medium for communicating instruction to the 
mind, and captivating the affections of the heart. The 
truth of this remark is well illustrated by the use which 
all know has been made of it by the poets of the an¬ 
cients, to instruct in the various arts and sciences, as 
well as to incite to deeds of heroism, and to lives of 
virtue.” 

The representation of this doctrine by the Poets will 
be useful, and we believe welcome, to our readers. In 
following this subject among the poets, we arrange their 
ideas under three heads — as argumentative — as con¬ 
taining incidental allusions to this subject — and as 
consolatory. 

SECTION I. 

ARGUMENTATIVE POETRY. 

I. 

In the first piece we introduce, the reader wiU find a 
number of forcible arguments, beautifully connected, 
and happily expressed. They are so much the more 
striking to us, because they are placed in such fair 
contrast with the opposing error. 

RECOGNITION IN HEAVEN. 

Some tell us all earthly love must die, 

Nor enter the heavenly land; 

That friendship is lost above the sky 
’Midst the happy and joyous band. 

And can it be sol On that blissful shore 

Shall we meet the lov’d we.have lost, no more? 

17 * 




198 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


They tell us that those unseen on earth 
Shall be dear as an only child; 

And the mother belov’d, who gave us birth, 

Shall be met as the savage wild! 

And can it be so ! in that land of love, 

Are there no joys of reunion above 1 

They tell us the pastor, who taught us the way 
To the blessed abode of the just, 

Shall know us no more in eternity’s day, 

Tho’ the body’s redeem’d from the dust. 

And can it be so, in that world of bliss ! 

Shall we love less there than we do in this? 

They tell us the martyr who fell on the shore, 

’Mid the war-cry, and horror untold, 

Shall meet his lov’d flock with joy no more 
Than the merchant who traffics for gold. 

And will it be so, in that golden street 

Where Williams, and all he held dear, shall meet? 

Is ignorance found in the spirit’s home ! 

Is memory left in the dust I 

Then shall we not feel that we stand alone , 

As strangers among the just! 

And can it be so, in that city of light, 

Where love is unfading, and joy ever bright! 

Is darkness found in that cloudless sky 
Veiling the life just pass’d: 

Forgotten the friends who saw us die 
All faithful and true to the last! 

And can it be so! — Shall we meet no more 

When this feverish dream of life is o’er? 

Then where is the pastor’s “crown of joy,” 

And where the reward of the saint’s employ ? 

And why do we cherish this restless love, 

If all will be lost or forgotten above! 

Oh! can it be thus,—in that blissful place 
Where we see the redeem’d ones face to face ? 


AMONG TIIE POETS. 


199 


II. 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 

Oft weeping memory sits alone, 

Beside some grave at even: 

And calls upon some spirit flown, 

Oh say shall those on earth our own, 

Be ours again — in heaven? 

Amid these lone sepulchral shades, 

Where sleep our dear ones riven, 

Is not some lingering spirit near, 

To tell if those divided here, 

Unite and know—in heaven? 

Shall friends who o’er the waste of life, 

By the same storms are driven; 

Shall they recount in realms of bliss, 

The fortunes and the tears of this, 

And love again — in heaven? 

When hearts, which have on earth been one, 
By ruthless death are riven: 

Why does the one which death has reft 
Drag off in grief the one that’s left, 

If not to meet — in heaven? 

The warmest love on earth is still 
Imperfect when ’tis given; 

But there’s a purer clime above, 

Where perfect hearts in perfect love 
Unite: and this — is heaven. 

If love on earth is but “ in part” 

As light and shade at even: 

If sin doth plant a thorn between 
The truest hearts; there is, I ween 
A perfect love — in heaven. 



200 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


Oh happy world! Oh glorious place! 

Where all who are forgiven, 

Shall find their loved and lost below, 

And hearts, like meeting streams, shall flow 
For ever one — in heaven. 

III. 

The middle verse of the preceding poem embodies 
the idea, that sometimes grief for the dead has the 
effect of drawing the bereaved* one after the one that 
has departed. That poem was written before the- author 
had contemplated a volume on this subject; and also 
before he had seen the remarkable incident upon which 
the following beautiful and affecting verses are founded. 
This instance, as well as others which might be pro¬ 
duced, shows that the idea above referred to is no fancy. 
It certainly shows a strength of affection which it is 
hard to consider mortal. It is, indeed, only a verifica¬ 
tion of the scripture declaration: “ Love is strong as 
death !” Songs viii. 6. 

AN INDIAN MOTHER’S LOVE. 

Os-he-ouh-mai, the wife of Little Wolf, one of the 
Iowa Indians, died while at Paris, of an affection of the 
lungs, brought on by grief for the death of her young 
child in London. Her husband was unremitting in his 
endeavours to console and restore her to the love of 
life; but she constantly replied — “No ! no! my four 
children recall me. I see them by the side of the Great 
Spirit. They stretch out their arms to me, and are 
astonished that I do not join them.” 


AMONG THE POETS. 


201 


No! no! I must depart 
From earth’s pleasant scenes, for they but wake 
Those thrilling memories of the lost which shake 
The life-sands from my heart. 

Why do ye bid me stay 1 ? 

Should the rose linger when the young buds die, 
Or the tree flourish when the branches lie 
Stricken by sad decay] 

Doth not the parent dove, 

When her young nurslings leave their lowly home 
And soar on joyous wings to heaven’s blue dome, 
Fly the deserted grove] 

Why then should I remain] 

Have I not seen my sweet-voiced warblers soar, 

So far away that Love’s fond wiles no more 
May lure them back again] 

They cannot come to me; 

But I may go to them — and as the flower 
Awaits the dewy eve, I wait the hour 
That sets my spirit free. 

Hark! heard ye not a sound 
Sweeter than wild-bird’s note or minstrel’s lay ] 

I know that music well, for night and day 
I hear it echoing round. 

It is the tuneful chime 
Of spirit voices ! — ’tis my infant band 
Calling the mourner from this darkened land 
To joy’s unclouded clime. 

My beautiful, my blest! 

I see them there, by the Great Spirit’s throne; 
With winning words and fond beseeching tone 
They woo me to my rest. 


202 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


They chide my long delay, 

And wonder that I linger from their home; 

They stretch their loving arms to bid me come — 
Now would ye have me stay? 

E. S. S. 


IY. 


KNOWLEDGE OF EACH OTHER IN HEAVEN. 

I count the hope no day-dream of the mind, 

No vision fair of transitory hue, 

The souls of those, whom once on earth we knew, 
And lov’d, and walk’d with in communion kind, 
Departed hence, again in heaven to find. 

Such hope to nature’s sympathies is true ; 

And such, we deem, the holy word to view 
Unfolds; an antidote for grief designed, 

One drop from comfort’s well. ’Tis true we read 
The Book of life: but if we read amiss, 

By God prepared fresh treasures shall succeed 
To kinsmen, fellows, friends, a vast abyss 
Of joy ; nor aught the longing spirit need 
To fill its measure of enormous bliss. 

Bishop Mant. 


Y. 

In the beautiful poem of Montgomery, this doctrine 
is sweetly imbedded. It is not so much the logic as 
the life which gives this piece such strength to win our 
heart. We call it beautiful, and feel its influence, 
without asking closely in what its strength lies. Like 
a real friend, it bears acquaintance, and yields more 
richly in proportion as it is studied. Thousands have 
loved it who could not tell why — a real evidence of its 
excellence — because it lays hold of our life deeper 
than that part of us which renders a reason. 


AMONG THE POETS. 


203 


NOT LOST, BUT GONE BEFORE. 

Friend after friend departs; 

Who hath not lost a friend? 

There is no union here of hearts, 

That finds not here an end: 

Were this frail world our final rest, 

Living or dying none were blest. 

Beyond the flight of time, 

Beyond the reign of death, 

There surely is some blessed clime, 

Where life is not a breath; 

Nor life’s affections transient fire, 

Whose sparks fly upward and expire. 

There is a world above, 

Where parting is unknown; 

A long eternity of love, 

Formed for the good alone; 

And faith beholds the dying here, 

Translated to that glorious sphere. 

Thus star by star declines, 

’Till all are passed away, 

As morning high, and higher shines, 

To pure and perfect day; 

Nor sink those stars in empty night, 

But hide themselves in heaven’s own light. 

SECTION II. 

INCIDENTAL ALLUSIONS. 

By these incidental allusions to this doctrine among 
the Poets, we learn not only how generally it was be¬ 
lieved by them, but also how firmly and comfortably it 
sits upon the heart, especially in its silent and medita- 


204 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


tive hours. We see how naturally the heart, flowing 
into the griefs of others in the sweet stream of song, 
glides calmly on to this delightful conclusion. Most 
of these sentiments were expressed under a fresh sense 
of bereavement, and are therefore real living words. 
Either the Poet is comforting his own aching heart, or 
the heart of a friend. If it is his own, it is significant 
that he makes no apology and offers no argument in 
favour of the sentiment he utters, but firmly and in 
faith alludes to it as a settled truth. When it is an¬ 
other’s sorrow he seeks to assuage, the allusion shows 
how naturally he takes it for granted, that the friend 
whom he thus incidentally reminds of this doctrine has 
no doubts as to its truth. 

And how easily do our hearts and our convictions 
follow him in these allusions. He speaks in us, and 
we hear him gladly. He utters our griefs, he directs 
our longings, better than we could ourselves; and we 
are content that he should lead us on in the bright 
path of our hopes, to find the loved and lost again. 

I. 

Here is a stanza, the full tenderness of which none 
but a bereaved mother can feel. 

Oh ! when a mother meets on high, 

The child she lost in infancy; 

Hath she not then for pains and fears, 

The day of woe, the watchful night, 

For all her sorrows, all her tears, 

An over-payment of delight? 


AMONG THE POETS. 


205 


II. 

In the Sacred Lyrics of R. Huie is a beautiful poem 
on the death of his little son, which winds up with an 
allusion to this doctrine. Here is the last verse. Where 
is there any scripture to forbid us the hope expressed 
in the last line ? 

My little one, my fair one, thou canst not come to me, 

But nearer draws the numbered hour, when I shall go to thee; 
And thou, perchance, with seraph smile, and golden harp in hand, 
May’st come the first to welcome me, to our Emanuel’s land. 


III. 

Oh blissful scene! where severed hearts 
Renew the ties most cherished; 

Where nought the mourned and mourner parts; 

Where grief with life is perished. 

Oh! nought do I desire so well, 

As here to die, and there to dwell! 


IV. 


All is not over with earth’s broken tie— 

Where, where should sisters love, if not on high 1 

Mrs. Hemans. 


V. 

I look to recognize again, through the beautiful mask of their per¬ 
fection, 

The dear familiar faces I have somewhile loved on earth; 

I long to talk with grateful tongue of storms and perils past, 

And praise the mighty Pilot that hath steered us through the 
rapids. M. F. Tupper. 

18 


206 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


VI. 

The saints on earth, when sweetly they converse, 

And the dear favors of kind heaven rehearse, 

Each feels the other’s joys, both doubly share 
The blessings which devoutly they compare. 

If saints such mutual joy feel here below, 

When they each other’s heavenly foretastes know, 
What joys transport them at each other’s sight, 

When they shall meet in empyreal height! 

Friends, even in heaven, one happiness would miss, 
Should they not know each other when in bliss. 

Bishop Ken. 


VII. 

There is only a certain class of mourners who can 
feel the tenderness of the following touching allusion 
of Southey. For them it is here inserted. As in 
piety, so in mourning, there is a secret which belongs 
entirely to those who have it by their own experience. 

Our first-born and our only babe bereft! 

Too fair a flower was she for this rude earth! 

The features of her beauteous infancy 
Have faded from me, like a passing cloud, 

Or like the glories of an evening sky: 

And seldom hath my tongue pronounced her name 
Since she was summoned to a happier sphere. 

But that dear love, so deeply wounded then, 

I in my soul with silent faith sincere 
Devoutly cherish till we meet again. 

VIII. 

’Tis sweet, as year by year we lose 
Friends out of sight, in faith to muse 
How grows in Paradise our store. 



AMONG THE POETS. 


207 


IX. 

A treasure but removed— 

A bright bird parted for a clearer day— 
Yours still in heaven! 

X. 

A Mother’s Lament. 

I loved thee, daughter of my heart; 

My child, I loved thee dearly; 

And though we only met to part,— 
How sweetly ! how severely !— 

Nor life nor death can sever 
My soul from thine for ever. 

Thy days, my little one, were few; 

An angel’s morning visit, 

That came and vanished with the dew, 
’Twas here,—’tis gone—where is it? 
Yet didst thou leave behind thee 
A clue for love to find thee. 

Sarah! my last, my youngest love, 

The crown of every other! 

Though thou art born in heaven above, 

I am thine only Mother! 

Nor will affection let me 

Believe thou canst forget me. 

Then — thou in heaven and I on earth — 
May this one hope delight us, 

That thou wilt hail my second birth, 
When death shall reunite us, 

Where worlds no more can sever 
Parent and child for ever. 


Montgomery. 





208 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


XI. 

Departed Friends. 

How natural it is, when we gaze upon the bright 
skies in a beautiful star-light night, to think of the 
spirits of the dead ! This all have experienced. Then, 
what a feeling comes over us, strangely made up of 
silent dread, inward joy, and holy longing. The poem 
we here introduce, was written under the influence of 
such a night scene, and commends itself to the heart. 

Who ever looked upon yon starry spheres, 

Which brightly shine from out the dark blue sky, 

Nor call’d to mind the friends of other years, 

The hopes, the joys, the transient smiles and tears, 

Gushing from out where buried memories lie, 

And waking the full heart to highest ecstacy ! 

Oh, what a glorious vision, when the moon, 

Silently gliding through her pathless way, 

Has reached the extremest point of her high noon, 

Shedding o’er this our earth her radiant boon, 

While twinkling stars, and orbs of steadier ray, 

Shine with a light that mocks the intenser glare of day! 

Oh, who has ever gazed on such a scene, 

Nor thought the spirits of the blest were there ? 

Who, that beholds not in that blue serene, 

Bright isles, the abode of pleasures yet unseen, 

Except by those who, freed from mortal care, 

Have winged their raptur’d flight to realms of upper air ? 

The mother, who has watched with sleepless eye 
Her babe, and rocked with tireless foot the while, 

And when she saw the little sufferer die, 

Bowed her meek head and wept in agony, 

Fancies she hears, in yonder starry isle, 

Her little cherub’s voice, and sees his angel smile. 


AMONG THE POETS. 


209 


Oh, ye departed spirits of my sires, 

And ye, the loved ones of my childhood’s days, 

While now I look on yonder heavenly fires, 

Methinks I hear you tune your seraph lyres, 

Methinks I see you bend your pitying gaze 

On him who still must tread alone earth’s gloomy maze! 

Thou angel spirit, who so oft didst sing 
My infant cares to sleep upon thy breast, 

Let me but hear the rustling of thy wing, 

Around thy child its guardian influence fling! 

Oh, come thou from the island of the blest, 

And bear my weary soul up to thy sainted rest! 

Can we forget departed friends'? Ah, no! 

Within our hearts their memory buried lies; 

The thought that where they are, we too shall go, 

Will cast a light o’er darkest scenes of wo; 

For to their own blest dwellings in the skies, 

The souls whom Christ sets free exultingly shall rise. 

XII. 

There is a singular thought in Southey’s Ode on the 
portrait of Bishop Heber. He suggests that many of 
Heber’s admirers— 

Will gaze 
Upon his effigy 
With reverential love, 

Till they shall grow familiar with its lines, 

And know him when they see his face in heaven! 

Why may there not be truth in this beautiful thought ? 
We subjoin an incident which confirms it — an incident 
which is by far too touching to be false. 

“A little girl, in a family of my acquaintance, a lovely 
and precious child, lost her mother at an age too early 
18 * 


210 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


to fix the loved features in her remembrance. She was 
beautiful; and as the bud of her heart unfolded, it 
seemed as if won by that mother’s prayers to turn in¬ 
stinctively heavenward. The sweet, conscientious, and 
prayer-loving child, was the idol of the bereaved family. 
But she faded away early. She would lie upon the lap 
of the friend who took a mother’s kind care of her, 
and, winding one wasted arm about her neck, would 
say, 4 Now tell me about my mamma !’ And when the 
oft-told tale had been repeated, she would ask softly, 

4 Take me into the parlor; I want to see my mamma !’ 
The request was never refused; and the affectionate 
sick child would lie for hours, gazing on her mother’s 
portrait. But 

“Pale and wan she grew, and weakly— 

Bearing all her pains so meekly, 

That to them she still grew dearer, 

As the trial-hour grew nearer. 

44 That hour came at last, and the weeping neighbours 
assembled to see the little child die. The dew of death 
was already on the flower, as its life-sun was going 
down. The little chest heaved faintly — spasmodi¬ 
cally. 

44 4 Do you know me, darling?’ sobbed close in her 
ear, the voice that was dearest; but it awoke no an¬ 
swer. All at once a brightness, as if from the upper 
world, burst over the child’s colourless countenance. 
The eyelids flashed open, and the lips parted; the wan, 
curdling hands flew up, in the little one’s last impulsive 
effort, as she looked piercingly into the far above. 

44 ‘Mother !’ she cried, with surprise and transport in 


AMONG THE POETS. 


211 


her tone — and passed with that breath to her mother’s 
bosom. 

“ Said a distinguished divine, who stood by that bed 
of joyous death, 6 If I had never believed in the minis¬ 
tration of departed ones before, I could not doubt it 
now.’ 

“ ‘Peace I leave with you,’ said the wisest spirit that 
ever passed from earth to heaven. Let us be at ‘ peace’ 
amid the spirit-mysteries and questionings on which 
his eye soon shed the light of Eternity.” 

XIII. 

Gone — but not lost. 

By Mrs. Ellen Stone. 

Sweet bud of earth’s wilderness, rifled and torn! 

Fond eyes have wept o’er thee, fond hearts still will mourn; 

The spoiler hath come, with his cold withering breath, 

And the loved and the cherished lies silent in death. 

He felt not the burden and heat of the day! 

He hath passed from this earth, and its sorrows, away, 

With the dew of the morning yet fresh on his brow:— 

Sweet bud of earth’s wilderness, where art thou now ? 

And oh! do you question, with tremulous breath, 

Why the joy of your household lies silent in death? 

Do you mourn round the place of your perishing dust? 

Look onward and upward with holier trust! 

Who cometh to meet him, with light on her brow? 

What angel form greets him so tenderly now! 

’Tis the pure sainted mother, springs onward to bear 

The child of her love from this region of care! 


212 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


She bearetli him on to that realm of repose, 

Where no cloud ever gathers, no storm ever blows: 

For the Saviour calls lforne to the mansions above, 

This frail trembling floweret in mercy and love. 

There shall he for ever, unchanged by decay, 

Beside the still waters and green pastures stray; 

And there shall ye join him, with earth’s ransomed host, 

Look onward and upward ! “ he’s gone — but not lost /” 

SECTION III. 

Consolatory Poetry. 

The principal vein which the poets follow when they 
dwell on this subject is in the way of consolation. These 
sentiments will serve to show what is the burden of the 
heart in its deepest sorrow when bereaved of friends. 
It is the hope of blessed and eternal reunion in a better 
life. To this it instinctively turns as its joyful song in 
this house of pilgrimage. In the sighings of the poet 
we see what the heart wants. This is the great stream, 
ending in the ocean of eternal love, into which all in¬ 
dividual tears fall, and are changed from tears of sor¬ 
row to tears of joy. Into this stream the poet merges 
his mysterious soul, whenever he undertakes to speak 
for us, or to guide and interpret our own feelings to 
us. Then he feels what we feel, loves what we love, 
and seeks what we seek. 

It is remarkable and significant that with this doc¬ 
trine the poets generally end their consolatory pieces. 
They frequently begin with other sources of consola¬ 
tion, but finally slide into this. Thus the whole is 
crowned with this much-desired union. This shows 
whither the heart’s wishes tend. Here the aching 


AMONG THE POETS. 


213 


heart rests, and only here. Here is its home, with 
what it loves — where else ? Even when higher sources 
of consolation are acknowledged, even when Christ is 
made the substance of heavenly felicity, still here the 
heart centres when its sorrows flow from bereavement. 
Not that friends are dearer to it than Christ, but be¬ 
cause that which is the immediate cause of sorrow is 
most prominent. When one is lost to the heart it 
leaves the ninety-and-nine others which are safe, and 
goes after the lost one till it is found. In joy, other 
attractions in heaven are brighter, but in sorrow and 
fresh bereavement, this. Nor is this wrong, for He 
who wept with the sisters of Bethany for their brother 
Lazarus, is merciful even to our infirmities. Martha 
did not say to Him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, I 
would not have wept though my brother had died; but 
she said, “ Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother 
had not died.” Neither does He chide her, and say, I 
am here, that is enough; but he rather encourages her 
hope in the direction of her lost brother, upon whom 
her heart was now set in the intensity of her grief, as 
a source of comfort: — “ Thy brother shall rise again.” 
It is proper, then, that the poets terminate their conso¬ 
lations in this precious faith. 

“ In times of bereavement, the mind often becomes 
utterly depressed and bewildered at its inability of ex¬ 
pression, and it turns instinctively to the language of 
another: to 6 the deep sad harmonies that haunt the 
breast of the poet,’ who has foreshadowed a portraiture 
of our own hearts; and we are comforted by the assu¬ 
rance it gives, that our state is not peculiar. In our 
weakness of grief we are apt to feel as if alone; as if 



214 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


set apart as a mark for the shafts of adversity; hut 
we now learn the fact, that we are only one of the 
great brotherhood of sorrow.” The discovery that we 
have sympathy, and that others weep as well as our¬ 
selves, disperses our loneliness, and takes away much 
of the complaint of our grief. 

The poet is a comforter which all love; he comes to 
us so softly, so silently, so feelingly. In the tender 
hour of fresh bereavement we instinctively withdraw 
from others and love to be alone. We hide ourselves 
from the every-day contact of those who, though they 
would, cannot feel with us, and measure the full extent 
and depth of our grief. “ We shrink even from the in¬ 
competence of those who, from genuine kindliness of 
heart, obtrude their sympathy upon us. The common¬ 
place generalities to which such persons resort, revolt 
us, as heartless and hackneyed; the human voice, even, 
assumes a dissonance, when it urges us to forget a 
grief over which the heart yearns with a devoted ten¬ 
derness, feeling as if relief were a treason to the be¬ 
loved object. Few can afford consolation in periods 
like these — few should attempt it.” 

At such times we choose our own comforters, and 
these must have a sacred priestly character — speaking 
a language removed from the common-place of ordinary 
life. The poet suits us. He does not only speak gentle 
and soothing words, but he makes himself the very soul 
of our grief, speaking rather in us than to us. He 
has felt the same which we now feel, sought the same 
relief, and now tells us how and where he found it. 
His words do not flow coldly from his lips and so fall 
upon our ears, but we feel them at our heart, welling 


AMONG THE POETS. 


215 


up from the depths of the soul, warm, tender and 
living. Thus he affords light to the heart in its dark¬ 
ness, and life in its death. 

Truly has it been said, “ the poet is the interpreter 
of the human heart — the expounder of its mysteries. 
An utterance is given to him which is denied to others, 
even although their feelings may he akin to his own. 
Through him Truth speaks: and wild or wayward as 
may seem her revelations, yet it is the common senti¬ 
ment, the universal emotion, she speaks; she gives the 
germ of a nobler principle, the incentive to a higher 
hope. We weep over his words, relieved by a strange 
sympathy; find through him a voice and utterance for 
thoughts too deep for expression; and are at once re¬ 
lieved, comforted, and instructed.” 


I. 


Reunion Above. 

Leggett . 

If yon bright stars, which gem the night. 
Be each a blissful dwelling sphere, 
Where kindred spirits reunite 
Whom death hath torn asunder here, 
How sweet it were at once to die, 

To leave this blighted orb afar; 

Mixt soul and soul to cleave the sky 
And soar away from star to star. 

But oh! how dark, how drear and lone, 
Would seem the brightest world of bliss, 
If, wandering through each radiant one, 
We failed to find the loved of this! 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


If there no more the ties shall twine 
Which death’s cold hand alone could sever, 

Ah, then those stars in mockery shine, 

More hateful as they shine for ever! 

It cannot be — each hope, each fear, 

That lights the eye or clouds the brow, 

Proclaims there is a happier sphere, 

Than this bleak world that holds us now. 

There is a voice which sorrow hears, 

When heaviest weighs life’s galling chain, 

’Tis heaven that whispers—“ dry your tears, 

The pure in heart shall meet again.” 

II. 

Sorrow not, even as others which have no 

HOPE.” 

By Rev. Charles Wesley. 

If death my friend and me divide, 

Thou dost not, Lord, my sorrows chide, 

Nor frown my tears to see; 

Restrained from passionate excess, 

Thou bidst me mourn in calm distress, 

For them that rest in thee. 

I feel a strong, immortal hope, 

Which bears my mournful spirit up 
Beneath its mountain load; 

Redeemed from death, and grief, and pain, 

I soon shall find my friend again, 

Within the arms of God. 

Pass the few fleeting moments more, 

And death the blessing shall restore, 

Which death hath snatched away: 

For me, thou wilt the summons send, 

And give me back my parted friend, 

In that eternal day ! 


AMONG THE POETS. 


217 


III. 

And what if the death-pang my bosom must rend, 

If it mingles my spirit with that of my friend I 
I care not how soon they may sever earth’s ties, 

For though parted on earth we ’ll be linked in the skies. 


IV. 

From Sacred Lyrics, by R. Huie. 

Sleep on, my babe! thy little bed 
Is cold, indeed, and narrow; 

Yet calmly there shall rest thy^head, 

And neither mortal pain nor dread 
Shall e’er thy feelings harrow! 

Thou may’st no more return to me; 

But there’s a time, my dearest, 

When I shall lay me down by thee, 

And when of all, my babe shall be 
That sleep around, the nearest! 

And sound our sleep shall be, my child, 
Were earth’s foundation shaken; 

Till He, the pure, the undefiled, 

Who once, like thee, an infant smiled, 

The dead to life awaken! 


Then, if to Him, with faith sincere, 
My babe at death was given, 

The kindred tie that bound us here, 
Though rent apart with many a tear, 
Shall be renewed in heaven! 


19 




218 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


y. 

There is no doubt danger that some mav comfort 
themselves with the hope of meeting their friends in 
heaven, who have themselves no sure title to that 
blessed place! so deceitful is the heart; and so hastily 
does it seize at pleasant conclusions, without making 
all right by the way. What a sore and bitter disap¬ 
pointment will that be, when, instead of meeting their 
friends in heaven, they find ‘themselves excluded from 
it for ever! Let the truth be deeply impressed upon 
our hearts, that if we would see our friends in heaven, 
our first duty is to become Christians. No others 
shall ever enter through the gates into that blissful 
city. Let the first two lines be pondered by all who 
love their friends but love not Christ! 

Yes — if I have not sacrificed all other, claims to thine, 
Surrendered with a selfish love, because that thou wert mine, 

I still may hope to feel that bliss within my soul revive, 

Which never in this yearning heart will languish while I live; 
May hear thy unfbrgotten voice join the archangel’s song, 

And know my own beloved one, amidst a holy throng, 

May see thee, by the light that breaks the shadows of the tomb, 

A portion of my happiness in the bright world to come! 

VI. 

My Boy! 

I know his face is hid 

Under the coffin lid; 

Closed are his eyes; cold is his forehead fair; 

My hand that marble felt; 

O’er it in prayer I knelt; 

Yet my heart whispers that— he is not there! 


AMONG THE POETS. 


219 


Not there ?—Where, then, is he ? 

The form I used to see 
Was but the raiment that he used to wear. 

The grave that now doth press 
Upon that cast-off dress, 

Is but his wardrobe locked; — he is not there! 

He lives! — In all the past 
He lives; nor, to the last, 

Of seeing him again will I despair; 

In dreams I see him now, 

And on his angel brow, 

I see it written, “Thou shalt see me there /” 

Yes, we all live to God! 

Father, thy chastening rod 
So help us, thine afflicted ones, to bear, 

That in the spirit land. 

Meeting at thy right hand, 

’T will be our heaven to find that — he is there! 


VII. 

Not lost, but gone before. 

Say, why should friendship grieve for those 
Who safe arrive on Canaan’s shore? 
Released from all their hurtful foes, 

They are not lost — but gone before. 

How many painful days on earth 
Their fainting spirits numbered o’er! 

Now they enjoy a heavenly birth; 

They are not lost—^ut gone before. 

Dear is the spot where Christians sleep, 
And sweet the strain which angels pour; 

O why should we in anguish weep? 
They are not lost — but gone before. 



220 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


Secure from every mortal care, 

By sin and sorrow vexed no more, 

Eternal happiness they share, 

Who are not lost — but gone before. 

To Zion’s peaceful courts above, 

In faith triumphant may we soar, 

Embracing in the arms of love, 

The friends not lost — but gone before. 

On Jordan’s banks whene’er we come, 

And hear the swelling waters roar, 

Father, convey us safely home, 

To friends not lost — but gone before. 

VIII. 

Ye who mourn 

Whene’er yon vacant cradle, or the robes 
That decked the lost one’s form, call back a tide 
Of alienated joy, can ye not trust 
Your treasure to His arms, whose changeless care 
Passeth a mother’s love 1 Can ye not hope, 

When a few hastening years their course have run, 
To go to him, though he no more on earth 
Returns to you ? 

And when glad faith doth catch 
Some echo of celestial harmonies, 

Archangel’s praises, with the high response 
Of cherubim, and seraphim, oh think — 

Think that your babe is there! 

IX. 

Dreams of Heaven. 

Mrs. ^fcemans. 

O, woman! with the soft sad eye 
Of spiritual gleam! 

Tell me of those bright realms on high, 

IIow doth thy deep heart dream ? 


AMONG THE POETS. 


221 


By thy sweet mournful voice I know, 

On thy pale brow I see, 

That thou hast loved in silent woe, 

Say, what is heaven to thee ? 

“ Oh! heaven is where no secret dread 
May haunt Love’s meeting hour; 
Where from the past no gloom is shed 
O’er the heart’s chosen bower; 

“ Where every severed wreath is bound; 

And none have heard the knell, 

That smites the soul in that wild sound— 
Farewell! Beloved , farewell /” 


X. 

On witnessing the burial of an emigrant’s child, in 
real sympathy with the bereaved, Mrs. Hemans thus 
beautifully sings— 

* I 

And to her who bore him, 

Her who long must weep, 

Yet shall heaven restore him, 

From his pale sweet sleep! 

Those blue eyes of love and peace again 
Through her soul will shine, undimmed by pain. 

XI. 

Weep not for her! There is no cause for wo; 

But rather nerve thy spirit, that it walk 
Unshrinking o’er the thorny paths below, 

And from earth’s low defilements keep thee back: 

So, when a few fleet severing years have flown, 

She’ll meet thee at heaven’s gate—and lead thee on! 

Weep not for her! 


19 * 


222 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


XII. 

This beautiful poem is doubly sweet and comforting, 
as it has been set to excellent music; thus it has found 
a deeper lodgment in the hearts and associations of 
many than it could otherwise have done. I have fre¬ 
quently noticed the deep effect it produced when sung 
at the breaking up of small social circles, among the 
young. How many upon whose lips it lingered in 
parting have not met again! Youthful associates, 
alas! how they scatter! The circles of our early love,— 
how the gems have dropped away ! In different places, 
and amid various fortunes, bright and sad, the compa¬ 
nions of our early life are crowding towards the grave. 
So pass we away! May we not hope that the reading 
of this poem here, may beget in the heart of the reader 
a stronger resolution to strive after the eternal inheri¬ 
tance of the saints — and at the same time draw forth 
a prayer for those far away ? And will it not open 
afresh a fountain of true consolation to such as are 
separated from pious friends ? 

Reunion in Heaven. 

When shall we meet again? 

Meet ne’er to sever? 

When will peace wreathe her chain 
Round us for ever? 

Our hearts will ne’er repose 

Safe from each blast that blows 

In this dark vale of woes— 

Never — no, Never! 

When shall love freely flow, 

Pure as life’s river? 

When shall sweet friendship glow. 

Changeless for ever? 


AMONG THE POETS. 


223 


Where joys celestial thrill, 

Where bliss each heart shall fill, 

And fears of parting chill— 

Never — no, Never! 

Up to that world of light, 

Take us, dear Saviour; 

May we all there unite, 

Happy, for ever: 

Where kindred spirits dwell, 

There may our music swell, 

And time our joys dispel— 

Never — no, Never! 

Soon shall we meet again— 

Meet ne’er to sever; 

Soon will peace wreathe her chain 
Round us for ever: 

Our hearts will then repose 
Secure from worldly woes: 

Our songs of praise shall close— 

Never — no, Never! 

XIII. 

O! it is sweet to die,—to part from earth,— 

And win all heaven for things of idle worth; 

Then sure thou wouldst not, though thou couldst awake 
The little slumberer, for its mother’s sake. 

It is when those we love, in death depart, 

That earth has slightest hold upon the heart. 

Hath not bereavement higher wishes taught, 

And purified from earth, thine earth-born thought ? 

I know it hath. Hope then appears more dear, 

And heaven’s bright realms shine brightest through a tear. 
Though it be hard to bid thy heart divide, 

And lay the gem of all thy love aside— 

Faith tells thee, and it tells thee not in vain, 

That thou shalt meet thine infant yet again. 




224 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


On seraph wings the new-born spirit flies, 

To brighter regions and serener skies; 

And ere thou art aware the day may be, 

When to those skies thy babe shall welcome the. 

XIY. 

My stricken heart to Jesus yields 
Love’s deep devotion now, 

Adores and blesses— while it bleeds — 
His hand that strikes the blow. 

Then fare thee well — a little while — 
Life’s troubled dream is past; 

And I shall meet with thee, my child, 

In life — in bliss, at last! 


These beautiful extracts from the poets show that 
the spirit of poetry is in love with this doctrine, speak¬ 
ing of it with the most implicit faith, and giving to it 
all its own sweet tenderness. Now, by way of con¬ 
cluding this chapter, we cannot refrain from intro¬ 
ducing another beautiful poem, with the affecting inci¬ 
dent which drew it forth, to show how spontaneously 
the heart sings of this faith from its deep fullness in 
sudden emergencies of grief. The soothing strains of 
similar song, under similar circumstances, have been 
breathed from a thousand hearts, to which printed 
verse has never given a local habitation, so that it 
might reach the eyes and hearts of others. The inner 
world has also its poetry and its music; and the heart 
often has words, and a song, which the tongue is too 
slow to utter. Hence there is a great deal of unwritten 
poetry, and a great deal of music, that remains un- 




AMONG THE POETS. 


225 


sung. Haply in the instance to which we refer, an 
utterance was given equal to the burden of the heart, 
and — oh what touching numbers ! 

To show these lines in their true light and tender¬ 
ness, as well as in their strong and beautiful bearing 
on the subject before us, it is necessary to give the 
circumstances which called them forth. 

The author of them is Mrs. Sarah B. Judson, second 
wife of the excellent and eminent Dr. Judson, a mis¬ 
sionary to Burmah. In 1845, in the forty-fifth year 
of her age, and in the twenty-first year of her mission¬ 
ary life, this excellent lady’s health failed. It was 
seen that if she remained in the field she must soon 
sink into the grave. “ At last a voyage to America 
was named, as presenting the only prospect of life.” 
It was finally concluded upon that she, with her hus¬ 
band and children, should enter upon this voyage. The 
thought of it was both pleasant and mournful. “ To 
America ! the land of her birth, and the home of many 
a loved one; where parents, brothers and sisters, still 
trod the soil, and where her darling, her orphan boy,* 
might once again be folded to her bosom! Oh, should 
she visit dear, Christian America, once more ? Yet 
she could not leave those for whom she had toiled and 
prayed, during twenty years of her exile, without sad¬ 
ness. Had it been right, she would have preferred to 
die quietly in Burmah, rather than interrupt her hus¬ 
band’s labours; and her heart sunk at parting, for 
years, if not for life, with the most helpless of her 
babes — the eldest of the three — only four years of 

* The son of her former husband, the Rev. George D. Board- 
man. 




226 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


age. But duty demanded the sacrifice; and she had 
been too long obedient to this voice to think of opposi¬ 
tion now. They bore her to the ship, while both fair 
and dusky faces circled round; and long did the sound 
of those loved, farewell voices, half smothered in grief 
and choked with tears, dwell upon her ear and heart. 
Near the Isle of France, hope of final recovery grew 
so strong, that it became almost certainty; and now a 
voice from poor, perishing Burmah, seemed calling on 
the invalid for one more sacrifice. She dared not go 
back herself, but there seemed no longer a necessity 
for calling her husband from his missionary labor. He 
should now return to his lonely home in Burmah, and 
she, with her children, would pursue a way as lonely 
toward the “ setting sun.” It was after this resolution 
that the following lines, the last words ever traced by 
her fingers, were pencilled on a scrap of broken paper. 
Let the reader observe how naturally and how touch¬ 
ingly, under the feeling of uncertainty whether they 
should ever meet again on earth, her heart dwells on 
the prospect of a heavenly meeting. 

We part on this green islet. Love, 

Thou for the Eastern main, 

I, for the setting sun, Love — 

Oh, when to meet again? 

My heart is sad for thee, Love, 

For lone thy way will be; 

And oft thy tears will fall, Love, 

For thy children and for me. 

The music of thy daughter’s voice 
Thou’It miss for many a year; 

And the merry shout of thine elder boy^ 

Thou’It listen in ▼win to hear. 


AMONG THE POETS. 


227 


When we knelt to see our Henry die, 

And heard his last faint moan, 

Each wiped away the other’s tears — 

Now, each must weep alone. 

My tears fall fast for thee, Love,— 

How can I say farewell 1 
But go; — thy God be with thee, Love, 

Thy heart’s deep grief to quell! 

Yet my spirit clings to thine, Love, 

Thy soul remains with me, 

And oft we’ll hold communion sweet, 

O’er the dark and distant sea. 

And who can paint our mutual joy, 

When, all our wanderings o’er, 

We both shall clasp our infants three, 

At home on Burmah’s shore! 

But higher shall our raptures glow, 

On yon celestial plain, 

When the loved and parted here below 
Meet, ne’er to part again. 

Then gird thine armor on, Love, 

Nor faint thou by the way, 

Till Boodh shall fall, and Burmah’s sons 
Shall own Messiah’s sway. 

In all the missionary annals there are few things more 
affecting than this. A parting took place, but not the 
one anticipated in these verses. She became suddenly 
worse, and died on board the ship in the port of the 
Isle of St. Helena. They parted on that “ green islet,” 
but instead of sailing toward the “ setting sun,” she 
soared toward 

Yon celestial plain, 

Where the loved and parted here below 
Meet, ne’er to part again! 


228 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


The precious remains of so good a life lie buried in 
that distant isle of the sea — her spirit is in the land 
of eternal love. Who can believe that the meeting 
season, of which she prophesied so ardently in this 
dying hymn, will not be realized ? Will she see those 
no more for whom she “ toiled and prayed” in Burmah, 
for whom she so much desired the restoration of her 
health, and for whose sake she was so willing to see 
her husband return to them, leaving her and her chil¬ 
dren in the midst of the ocean ? Will she see no more 
those “elder boys,” and that “orphan boy,” and that 
“daughter,” and “Henry,” already in heaven? Is 
she now for ever separated from her husband, to whom 
she sung almost with her dying breath: 

Yet my spirit clings to thine, Love, 

Thy soul remains with me. 

Who can believe it ? See ! as soon as she is buried in 
that “beautiful, shady spot,” duty calls him to return 
in haste to his Master’s work. He leaves the place 
sadly, but not without the consolation of that hope of 
a meeting in heaven which was the swan song of his 
dying but now sainted wife. “ I was obliged,” says 
Hr. Judson, “to hasten on board the ship, and we im¬ 
mediately went to sea. On the following morning no 
vestige of the island was discernible in the distant 
horizon. For a few days, in the solitude of my cabin, 
with my poor children crying around me, I could not 
help abandoning myself to heart-breaking sorrow. But 
the promises of the Gospel came to my aid, and faith 
stretched her view to the bright world of eternal life, 
and anticipated a happy meeting with those beloved 


AMONG THE POETS. 


229 


beings whose bodies are mouldering at Amherst and 
St. Helena.” 


THE MOTHER AND HER DYING BOY. 

BOY. 

My mother, my mother, O let me depart! 

Your tears and your pleadings are swords to my heart; 
I hear gentle voices, that chide my delay; 

I see lovely visions that woo me away. 

My prison is broken, my trials are o’er! 

O mother, my mother, detain me no more! 

MOTHER. 

And will you then leave us, my brightest, my best ) 
And will you run nestling no more to my breast) 

The summer is coming to sky and to bower; 

The tree that you planted will soon be in flower; 

You loved the soft season of song and of bloom; 

O, shall it return, and find you in the tomb' 1 


BOY. 

Yes, mother, I loved in the sunshine to play, 

And talk with the birds and the blossoms all day; 
But sweeter the songs of the spirits on high, 

And brighter the glories round God in the sky: 

I see them, I hear them, they pull at my heart, 

My mother, my mother, O let me depart. 

MOTHER. 

O do not desert us! Our hearts will be drear, 

Our home will be lonely, when you are not here; 
Your brother will sigh ’mid his playthings, and say, 

I wonder dear William so long can delay: 

That foot like the wild wind, that glance like a star 
O what will this world be, when they are afar) 

20 






230 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


BOY. 

This world, dearest mother, O live not for this; 

No, press on with me to the fulness of bliss! 

And trust me, whatever bright fields I may roam, 
My heart will not wander from you and from home. 
Believe me still near you on pinions of love; 
Expect me to hail you when soaring above. 

MOTHER. 

Well, go, my beloved! The conflict is o’er; 

My pleas are all selfish, I urge them no more; 
Why chain your bright spirit down here to the clod, 
So thirsting for freedom, so ripe for its God 7 
Farewell then, farewell, till we meet at the Throne, 
Where love fears no parting, and tears are unknown 

BOY. 

O glory! O glory ! what music ! what light! 
What wonders break in on my heart, on my sight. 

I come, olessed spirits! I hear you from high; 

O frail, faithless nature, can this be to die? 

So near! what, so near to my Saviour and King ? 

O help me, ye angels, His glories to sing! 


OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 


231 


CHAPTER XI. 


(DhjEttiatts tn tt[E BnttrinE nf Jfanralg JUrngnitinn. 


I have heard you say, 

That we shall see and know our friends in heaven. 

If that be true, I shall see my boy again! 

For since the birth of Cain, the first male child, 

To him that did but yesterday suspire, 

There was not such a gracious creature born. 

But now will canker sorrow eat my bud, 

And chase the native beauty from his cheek, 

And he will look as hollow as a ghost; 

As dim and meagre as an ague’s fit; 

And so he ’ll die; and, rising so again, 

When I shall meet him in the court of heaven, 

I shall not know him: therefore, never, never, 

Must I behold my pretty Arthur more! 

Shakspeare. 

There are persons who, though they have any 
amount of positive proof in favour of a subject, never¬ 
theless doubt as long as certain difficulties existing in 
their minds are not removed. They have proof enough 
to enable them to believe, were it not for some objec¬ 
tions which they are unable to meet with a satisfactory 
answer. There is a class of persons also, who are, 







232 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


partly constitutionally, and partly from pride, doubters. 
They take pleasure in being singular, and seem to con¬ 
sider it a mark of superior intelligence to doubt what 
others believe. They seem to feel no other mission in 
regard to truth than to cast up objections to it, and 
throw difficulties in its way. Such persons never fairly 
and seriously weigh positive evidence in favour of a 
given subject, but only seek out objections against it; 
and if they are able to hunt up a certain quantity of 
objections and difficulties, they feel safe in rejecting it. 
They can always tell what they do not believe, and why 
they do not believe it; but they cannot so well say 
what they do believe, and why they believe it. It does 
not occur to them, that there may be more objections 
to their objections, than they are able to array against 
the doctrine to which they object. Such persons are 
not really in search of truth, have no real hunger for 
it, and will consequently not find it. They are like one 
who, professing himself in search of ripe and whole¬ 
some fruit, should be seen walking round an apple-tree, 
eager to see how many dry limbs, how many rotten 
apples, and how much tainted fruit unfit to eat, could 
be found on it; and if he found a formidable quantity 
of these, should turn away in disgust, sure that there 
was no good fruit on the tree. 

Many objections may be found always, even against 
a true doctrine. Nothing is easier than to show that 
there are difficulties which lie in the way of truth. Let 
it, however, be remembered, that if any doctrine can 
be proved to be true by positive evidence, a thousand 
objections that may be raised against it cannot prove 
it untrue. It remains true, even if we should not be 


OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 


233 


able to answer the objections; our failing to answer 
them proves nothing but our own limited knowledge. 
We must learn, first of all, in our search after truth, 
that our own ignorance is not its measure. In regard 
to the doctrine before us, however, we discover no 
objections which may not be fully answered; and we 
address ourselves therefore to this task. This will be 
expected of us by our readers, and we accordingly in¬ 
vite them to follow us patiently. 

FIRST OBJECTION. 

The great change which will take place in death . 

“ We shall all be changed.” The change which, ac¬ 
cording to the scriptures, is to take place, especially in 
our bodies at the transition of death, will, in many 
respects, be great. It is very natural that this consi¬ 
deration should generate fears that this change will be 
such as to hinder recognition, and perhaps render it 
wholly impossible. This is perhaps the first and most 
natural difficulty that arises in our minds when we ask 
the question,—shall we know our friends again in hea¬ 
ven ? This difficulty should be removed. 

A little careful inquiry into this matter will show, 
that the greatest part of this difficulty is only apparent. 
A great change may take place, both in the body and 
spirit, without destroying those marks of identity and 
those peculiarities of character by which recognition 
takes place. The change which comes with death will 
consist, not in adding any thing entirely or essentially 
new, but only in an unfolding and perfecting of what 
is already at hand in us. There is a great difference 
20 * 


234 HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 

between a small sapling and a full-grown tree; and 
yet great as the apparent change is, the marks of its 
identity continue through all the stages of its evolution. 
In the different stages of human life, through infancy, 
childhood, youth, manhood, and age, the same being 
continues, carrying with him his peculiarities, and pre¬ 
serves from one stage to the other those marks by 
which he is recognized as the same person. There are 
features which run with marked prominence through 
all these transitions. Should, however, these marks in 
themselves prove insufficient to effect a recognition, 
they may still serve as hints which, by the assistance 
of mutual recollections, associations, inquiries and re¬ 
plies, shall lead to a complete revival of former ac¬ 
quaintance. 

That the change which awaits us is one, not of trans¬ 
formation, but of evolution, is evident from scripture 
representations of it. The apostle Paul represents the 
new celestial man as rising out of the old earthly man, 
as the new grain rises out of the old. The change is 
not so much in the outward form as in the inward 
potence which fills out and pervades the form with a 
new life. The original form will remain while the ele¬ 
ment of corruption will be changed into that of incor¬ 
ruption. The dishonour, which in various ways, and 
in various degrees, attaches to our present life, will 
give way to glory. Weakness will be swallowed up in 
power. The natural will pass into the spiritual, the 
mortal into immortality. Now, all these changes are 
but risings from a lower to a higher life, which, though 
they involve great changes, are not in form but in 
power. They may all take place without radically 


OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 


235 


changing those familiar peculiarities which make recog¬ 
nition possible. As in life a person is changed from a 
sinner to a saint, while he still retains, to a great ex¬ 
tent, the same external features; so, the elements of 
power, glory and immortality, may be unfolded in us, 
in our glorification, without producing any more change 
in the appearance of that side of our being with which 
•we were wont to converse with our friends, than the 
positive condition of electricity does upon that which 
it fills with its mysterious fluid. 

“Gently — so have good men taught — 

Gently, and without grief, the old shall glide 
Into the new.” 

That gracious life into which we are renovated in 
regeneration, and which is to become complete in hea¬ 
ven, like its divine Author, does not destroy but fulfil. 
It makes that which exists perfect, and makes that 
perfection permanent by making it immortal. The 
transfiguration of Christ upon the mount was no doubt 
intended, in part, to give the apostles a glimpse of 
what they might expect when “ he should change their 
vile bodies, that they might be fashioned like unto his 
glorious body.” There the change which took place 
in their Master was great: “ the fashion of his coun¬ 
tenance was altered, and his raiment was white and 
glistening,” “and his face did shine as the sun;” yet 
still they knew Him from the rest amid that “ excellent 
glory,” and they “were eye-witnesses of his majesty.” 
His glorious person was still, as to its external marks, 
•what it was before, and could be recognized as his 
through the veil of holy light which enshrouded it. 




236 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


May not the same be the case with us in our glorified 
bodies ? 

We have still another illustration of the continuation 
through death and appearance in the resurrection of 
those marks by which recognition takes place, in the 
interview of Christ with His disciples after his resur¬ 
rection from the dead. When the disciples were toge¬ 
ther at Jerusalem, after He had risen, He appeared to 
them in His resurrection body. Luke xxiv. 36-44. 
From this passage we learn that Christ did not only 
show his disciples that his body was composed of “ flesh 
and bones,” showing them His hands and His feet, but, 
to convince them more fully, while their joy was too 
great to suffer them to believe such good tidings, He 
told them to “ handle” him, and He eat in their pre¬ 
sence “ a piece of broiled fish, and of an honey-comb.” 
Here then they had marks, even in His resurrection 
body, by which they might have known Him at once, 
which no doubt they would have done, had not their 
great surprise amazed and confounded them. By a 
natural process, however, a speedy and joyful recogni¬ 
tion is effected. Just let this whole scene be transferred 
to heaven; and why may not the like take place there 
as well as here ? 

True friendship and affection, moreover, are founded 
not so much upon outward appearances, as upon inward 
mutual spiritual qualities. These, it is true, manifest 
themselves and attract our love, through acts and or¬ 
gans of the body, though much obscured, the body in 
its imperfections interposing media which blunt the 
exhibition of these qualities, and destroying much of 
their impressiveness. Who knows but it may be one 


OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 


237 


of the advantages and excellencies of the glorified 
body, that it will place a more transparent medium 
between us and those qualities of soul in our friends 
which have fixed our affections on them, so as actually 
to facilitate our recognition of those agreeable traits 
of character in them which induced us to love them at 
first ? It is agreeable, both to reason and intimations 
of scripture, to believe that our intercourse in heaven 
will be more immediate and intuitive, and less through 
media, than on earth. If this be so, there are no doubt 
in us capacities for intercourse far more refined and 
intimate, which are not yet unfolded, but of which we 
will become conscious when once our spiritual powers 
and affections act in their refined and glorified bodies. 
“ Beloved, it doth not yet appear what we shall be!” 
The apostles seem to have felt themselves labouring 
under the constant consciousness of a disadvantage on 
account of the medium which their “vile body” inter¬ 
posed between them and Christ, which kept them at 
an aching distance from Him. John, who not only 
saw Jesus, but lay upon His bosom, and who seemed, 
as the “ beloved disciple,” to enjoy more intimate fel¬ 
lowship with Him than any of the rest, did not yet 
“see Him as He is;” but comforts the saints with the 
hope that this shall take place “when He shall ap¬ 
pear,” and “when we shall be like Him.” This same 
obscurity and imperfection, according to Paul, also 
characterizes the intercourse of saints with saints in 
this world ; for he is speaking of charity—love between 
man and man — when he says, “For w T e know in part, 
and we prophesy in part. But when that which is 
perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be 




238 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


done away. For now we see through a glass, darkly; 
but then face to face.” What else can this “face to 
face” mean, but a direct intuitive communion one with 
another when in our perfect bodies ? In a literal sense 
they had seen each other face to face on earth, but 
this was only a partial sight, obscured by imperfections 
of the body; when “ that which is in part shall be 
done away,” and when these “vile bodies” shall no 
more, like a glass, darkly obscure our view, “ then 
shall we know even as also we are known.” 

Thus the change which awaits us, so far from hin¬ 
dering us in recognizing our friends in heaven, will be 
the means of vastly facilitating it. The perfection 
which the scriptures encourage us to hope for in the 
heavenly world, will be of service to us in the renewal 
of affectionate communion with those we loved that 
have gone before, as well as in other respects. 

And shall I e’er again thy features trace, 

Beloved friend; thy lineaments review? 

Yes: though the sunken eyes, and livid hue 
And lips comprest, have quenched each lively grace, 
Death’s triumph; still I recognize the face 
Which thine for many a year affection knew ; 

And what forbids, that, clothed with life anew, 

It still on memory’s tablet holds its place ?— 

Tho’ then thy cheek with deathless bloom be sheen, 

And rays of splendor wreath thy sunlike brow, 

Th^t change I deem shall sever not between 
Thee and thy former self; nor disallow 
That love’s tried eyes discern thee through the skreen 
Of glory then, as of corruption now. 

Bishop Mant. 


OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 


239 


SECOND OBJECTION. 

If it were true , it would be more clearly revealed. 

It is said by way of objection: If this were a doc¬ 
trine, true and to be believed, it would have been more 
directly, clearly, and fully revealed. If true, this doc¬ 
trine is full of consolation; and it is therefore natural 
and reasonable, it is said, to think that He, who would 
not deprive His people of any source of comfort, would 
have spoken clearly on such an important point. 

Let us look at this objection. The fact that this 
doctrine is not often, and then only incidentally men¬ 
tioned, is rather a proof in its favour than against it. 
It shows that the truth of it was taken for granted at 
the time when it was thus incidentally alluded to — it 
was not necessary to propound it formally as a doc¬ 
trine, but merely to allude to it as something already 
universally believed. All scripture allusions to it are 
made upon the supposition that it is an acknowledged 
truth. In this view of the matter an incidental allu¬ 
sion is even stronger than a direct assertion; for while 
it has all the authority of a direct testimony, it shows 
at the same time the absence of all disposition or in¬ 
tention to deceive. Thus, if I say, I travelled under 
the rays of the hot sun, this is the strongest possible 
proof that it was a clear day, and in the summer. 

Moreover, there are many of the most important 
doctrines of the scripture resting on precisely the same 
ground as this, in this respect. Such, for instance, are 
the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, the necessity of 
making a profession of religion by a connection with 
the church, the immortality of the soul, infant bap- 




240 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


tism, female communion, family worship, and other less 
prominent doctrines or duties, concerning which we 
have no doubt. Such doctrines existed in the church 
from the beginning, were carried down its stream in 
the flow of their own life; they needed no positive 
statement, for they were established by the same evi¬ 
dence by which the mission of the church was estab¬ 
lished, and the mission of those who alluded to these 
doctrines as true. Just so in reference to this doctrine; 
its existence in the favour of those inspired persons 
who allude to it as true, is the strongest evidence of its 
truth. All doctrines of revelation must, in the nature 
of the case, come short of logical demonstration. They 
demand faith in them as the way to knowledge of them. 
They are to be regarded as facts existing, rather than 
as doctrines needing proof. It is doubtful whether we 
can demonstrate our own existence; at least we would 
make ourselves ridiculous by the attempt. Yet we 
know the fact of our existence by the actual life of 
which we are conscious. So, in revelation; we do not 
ask, can it be demonstrated, but is it a fact ?— is it 
credible ? In like manner, with regard to the doctrine 
before us; we do not ask, is it positively asserted ? can 
it be demonstrated ? hut has it existed as a fact ? is it 
so alluded to by the lips of inspiration ? has it lived 
as a reigning idea in the thoughts and hearts of men ? 
is it good and desirable, and can it be believed ? If 
all this be true, what weight can this objection have ? 
We answer, just as much as if we should deny that we 
live, because it is not positively stated, but only alluded 
to as an existing fact, granted by all. 


OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 


241 


THIRD OBJECTION. 

The heavenly life will be much higher than this. 

It has been thought that heavenly recognition can¬ 
not take place, because the heavenly life will be so 
much higher than this, and so far different from it, 
that all earthly relations, connections and dependen¬ 
cies, must be swallowed up, superseded, or set aside. 

To this we reply, that it is scriptural to say, that 
the future life will not be a destruction of this, but a 
continuation of it. We will be higher beings, and dif¬ 
ferent beings there, but not other beings. All our 
affections will be vastly elevated, sanctified, increased 
and perfected, without any violent severing of them 
from their past life on the earth. Here on earth, when 
one becomes a Christian, he rises into higher relations 
and affinities than those in w r hich he stood before; but 
this does not annihilate his previous being; it only 
perfects it. He does not, for instance, become unfit 
for family relations and social life in general by this 
advancement, but rather the contrary. His new rela¬ 
tion to Christ does not supersede and destroy his old 
relations to his friends and fellow men. His life flows 
on as before, only in a holier stream. His affections 
still radiate, but with a serener and heavenlier light. 
So in heaven; though introduced into higher and ho¬ 
lier grades of social life, the soul will still draw after 
it what it loved in its state of grace on earth, and 
continue to turn towards it with the sweetest remem¬ 
brance. 

We are also taught to expect in our Father’s house 
of “many mansions” a variety of joys. Granting even 
21 




242 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


that the soul is at times caught up into raptures of 
bliss, so as entirely to forget whether it is in the body 
or out of it — so as to forget all the affinities that lie 
upon a lower level; still, there may also be times when 
intercourse not unlike that of saints on earth may be 
desirable, profitable, and of holy relish. The joys of 
the past are passing sweet! A mutual social review 
with friends of the joys and even sorrows of earth, 
may fill an hour of heavenly pastime not unworthy of 
the place. Especially so, as it will have a direct ten¬ 
dency to inspire deeper gratitude, and incite to louder 
and loftier praise of God’s redeeming love. Will not 
there the weary rest more sweetly as they remember 
their former weariness ? — will not prisoners and ser¬ 
vants feel more joyous in their heavenly freedom, as 
memory still faintly repeats the echo of the oppressor’s 
voice, from the far-off regions of earth and time ? On 
the same principle, we may believe, will the saints in a 
higher life reap increase of joy from a review and re¬ 
membrance of the social life of earth, and will find 
themselves advanced instead of retarded in happiness 
by a renewal of those ties commenced on earth and 
now continued in heaven. 

FOURTH OBJECTION. 

It will introduce partiality into Heaven. 

Will it not introduce partiality in heaven ? This 
question indicates an objection which is at first sight 
somewhat plausible. It can, however, be easily and 
satisfactory answered. Should we even find it neces¬ 
sary to believe that, in heaven, friends would love 
friends more than other saints, this could be without 


OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 


243 


any evil effects. For there no feelings of jealousy will 
exist to take cognizance of it. No one will stop, in 
the general joy and harmony which will characterize 
the heavenly intercourse, to measure, with suspicious 
eye, the affections of other saints, much less desire to 
attract any to himself to the disparagement of others. 
Suppose it even to be known there, that kindred and 
kindred are peculiarly attached, it could not be regard¬ 
ed an evil in heaven. Do Christians here on earth feel 
jealous of other Christians because they know them to 
be peculiarly attached to their own kindred ? Certainly 
not. They rather praise them for it, and themselves 
rejoice in it; and will not heaven be entirely free from 
all those unworthy feelings which would create difficulty 
there in the intercourse of saints made perfect in holy 
love ? 

Peculiar individual attachments are not uncongenial 
in a perfect state of society. On the contrary, it is 
one of the most prominent and delightful features of 
grace in this life, that it begets and increases general 
love to all, and particular love to some. The strongest 
particular attachments that earth has ever beheld, were 
formed and continued under the power of the Christian 
life. Will glory divide what grace has united? Will 
those ties which grace begets and nourishes be unfit to 
be renewed in the eternal existence of the saints ? The 
holy preferences, then, which this doctrine might seem 
to introduce into heaven, are rather to be praised than 
to be blamed. As the moon, in moving round the earth, 
does not the less move, with all the other planets, round 
the sun, so the saints in heaven, who cluster, by sweet 
silent attraction, around the objects of their peculiar 





244 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


attachments, will not thereby fail to move on, with all 
saints , round the Saviour, as the Sun of righteousness, 
in the general harmony of heaven. 

In this life we may act from various motives, all of 
which may he right ones, though some may he subordi¬ 
nate to others; so in heaven, we may exercise various 
affections, and if we should even grant that some are 
less high and excellent than others, they would not 
thereby be rendered improper. A small light is not 
darkness, because it is not so large and bright as a 
larger one. We might as well say that children, in 
loving one another, must necessarily disparage their 
parents — or because stars shine they dishonour the 
moon. In this world saints have their chief enjoyments 
in direct communion with God, hut this does not exclude 
and make unlawful those thousand little every-day joys 
which fall to their lot, and make up their incidental 
and subordinate comforts. 

FIFTH OBJECTION. 

The love of Christ will occupy us entirely. 

It is said that in heaven Jesus and his love will em¬ 
ploy our affections so entirely and eternally, that we 
shall have no time nor desire to know and to be con¬ 
cerned about our friends; and that even a wish to 
know our friends, and to renew our particular affection 
for them, would he a disparagement to Christ. Some 
have expressed themselves with great extravagance on 
this point. This objection has the recommendation of 
having a zeal for Christ, but it will hardly be found to 
be according to knowledge. Such expressions must be 


OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 


245 


placed in the same class with those which speak, with 
affected zeal, of the pure spirituality of heaven — as not 
a place, hut merely a state ; affirming that where Christ 
is, there is heaven, even if it were on earth or in hell. 
It is true that with Christ, and with the love of God 
shed abroad in our hearts, we have heavenly joys, hut 
we are nevertheless not in heaven, unless we are in 
that place which is heaven. Where Christ is now, there 
is heaven; and it is nowhere else, be our feelings what 
they may. In like manner, we may say, that to be 
with Christ, to behold His glory, and to enjoy His love, 
is the chief attraction of the heavenly world; but the 
scriptures nowhere countenance the idea that we shall 
do nothing there but stand like statues and gaze at 
Him. Such fancies betray a strange superficial extra¬ 
vagance. While the Lamb is the bright and glorious 
centre, in whom all the rays of heavenly love meet, He 
is, at the same time, the Sun which warms, animates 
and enlivens all the social circles of the saints which 
surround Him. While the saints love Him in the light 
and life of that love which He sheds around Him, they 
also see each other better, and love each other more, in 
the same blessed light; just as the brightness which 
makes the natural sun itself so prominent to our view, 
is the means, at the same time, of enabling us to see 
and know the objects around us. His presence there, 
no more destroys the social life and love of heaven, 
than the sun makes the earth dark. 

It might, with the same propriety, be argued that 
particular attachments among saints on earth were a 
disparagement to Christ, and hindered our love to Him. 
This, however, is not the case, but it is the direct con- 
21 * 



246 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


trary; for, as we have already seen in another place, 
Christ, by his example, encouraged particular friend¬ 
ships— the family of Bethany and “the beloved dis¬ 
ciple” shared his peculiar affections. In like manner 
children that love each other are not thereby hindered, 
but assisted, in loving their parents. It cannot, there¬ 
fore, be, that such particular attachments can, in any 
way, interfere with full, free and entire love to Christ. 
They do not so interfere in this life, and it cannot be 
shown that they will in the life to come. Love to Him, 
and love to the brethren, cannot be disjoined; for the 
same life of love which joins us to Him, joins us to 
each other. Where the one exists the other must also 
be found; and the more we love our friends, whom we 
have seen, the more will we love Christ, whom we have 
not seen. 

SIXTH OBJECTION. 

Christ's answer to the Sadducees. 

An objection has been built upon the answer which 
Christ gave to the Sadducees, when they asked Him 
whose wife she, who had been the wife of seven, should 
be in the resurrection. The answer of the Saviour was : 
“ Ye do err, not knowing the scripture, nor the power 
of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry 
nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God 
in heaven.” Matt. xxii. 29, 30. All that is here as¬ 
serted is, that in heaven they do not marry — it is by 
no means either said or intimated that they do not 
know each other. The Saviour could have met the 
difficulty which they sought, in this instance, to throw 
in the way of the doctrine of the resurrection, by 


OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 247 

simply denying the doctrine of heavenly recognition; 
and we may suppose that he would have done so were 
it not true. He could have said to them: your objec¬ 
tion amounts to nothing; for there is no knowledge of 
acquaintances, and no extension of earthly ties beyond 
the grave — even husbands and wives will have no 
knowledge of each other there; and hence your ques¬ 
tion, whose wife shall she he of the seven ? has no force 
by way of objection. He does not, however, resort to 
this mode of silencing them. He does not say that 
they shall not know each other, but only that they 
shall not marry nor be given in marriage. The reason 
he gives for this is plain and proper — “ they are as 
the angels of God in heaven” — or, as Luke says, 
“ neither can they die any more: for they are equal 
to the angels.” They are equal to the angels, not in 
every respect — not, certainly, in being strangers to 
each other eternally; but they are equally immortal 
as the angels : “they die no more.” Because they die 
no more, they can need no more reparations for losses 
through death by means of the marriage institution: 
hence this institution will not continue in heaven. 
This does not, in the least, intimate that the affections 
begotten, and the friendships formed in this relation, 
shall not be renewed and continue in the heavenly so¬ 
cial life.* 

* It has been made a question, indeed, whether the difference of 
sex extends to the other world ; and it is characteristic of the Hege¬ 
lian way of thinking in particular, that it allows but little room for 
any such supposition, having the tendency always to merge the in¬ 
dividual in the general, and to make men mere passing exemplifica¬ 
tions of humanity. But this view overthrows in the end the doctrine 
of a future state altogether; since without the distinction of indivi- 





248 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION, 


This passage maybe paraphrased thus: “Ye Sad- 
ducees who deny that there is a resurrection, and suppose 
that this instance gives you ground for such denial, do 

dual nature, as something continued over from the present life, 
there can be no sense of personal identity, no true resurrection, or 
other-world consciousness, in any form. It lies in the very concep¬ 
tion of our being as we have here described it, that its individual dis¬ 
tinctions should reach throughout the whole man in a permanent and 
enduring way. Personality cannot be evolved at all, except in such 
union with a particular natural organization, as to have wrought 
into it, from first to last, the same particularity, as a necessary part 
of its own constitution. It is one of the great merits of Schleier- 
macher again, to have perceived and asserted, with proper force, the 
claims of the individual over against the authority of the universal 
and absolute, as a permanent element in the constitution of man. 
The question before us then, according to this view, is already an¬ 
swered. The multiplication of the race will not extend, it is true, 
over into the other world, and with this must come to an end also 
the present significance of sexual relation as concerned in that ob¬ 
ject ; our whole present physical state indeed being but the transient 
process, by which our being is destined to emerge hereafter into a 
higher order of existence. In that higher state, we are told, they 
shall neither marry nor be given in marriage, but resemble in this 
respect the angels of heaven. The family constitution, in its strict 
sense, though it be the basis of all morality in its process of revela¬ 
tion, belongs only to the present order of things, and will not be 
continued in the complete kingdom of God. But we may not sup¬ 
pose that the vast and mighty distinction of our nature, out of which 
this radical constitution now springs, will come to an end in the 
same way. Entering as it does into the life of the entire person, it 
cannot be overthrown by the simple elevation of our mortal indivi¬ 
duality into the undying sphere of the spirit. On the contrary, it 
may be expected rather to appear now under its most purely ethical, 
and for that reason its highest also and richest form. In Christ 
Jesus there is neither male nor female, as there is also neither Jew 
nor Greek; not, however, by the full obliteration of all such differ¬ 
ences, but only through their free harmonious comprehension in a 
form of consciousness that is deeper than their opposition, and able 



OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 


249 


err in regard to the nature of the future life. The 
reason of your error is ignorance of the scriptural idea 
of the reason of the matrimonial institution, which is 
to people the earth, with the final object also of peopling 
heaven, by the increase of holy families. But there 
being no more death in heaven, the reason which in¬ 
duced Moses to command that the brother should take 
her to wife, viz. to “raise up seed unto his brother,” 
does not there exist; consequently the marriage insti¬ 
tution will not continue in the resurrection; and hence 
your objection to the resurrection on this ground has 
no force. 

We have before remarked, that the mere instinctive 
attachments of kindred and friends are not in their 
instinctive character eternal, but that they are designed 
to be sanctified by grace; and that, in cases where this 
is effected, their union with each other is a higher, an 
eternal one; not, however, destroying natural instinc¬ 
tive attachments, but perfecting them. In like manner, 

thus to reconcile them in an organic way. It is on the back ground 
of such universal unity precisely, that the differences stand out after 
all in the clearest delineation which their nature admits. There will 
be races and nationalities and temperaments, strongly marked, in 
heaven, no doubt, as we find them here in course of sanctification 
upon the earth. And so there will be, not in the flesh but in the spirit, 
the difference of sex there too. Humanity made for ever complete 
in the new creation will comprise in itself still, as the deep ground- 
tone of its universal organic harmony, the two great forms of exist¬ 
ence in which it was comprehended at the beginning, when God 
created man, as we are told, male and female, after his own image. 
In this view, it involves no extravagance to extend the idea of sex 
even to the angels themselves, although they neither marry nor are 
given in marriage. — Rev. Dr. J. W. Nevin, Mercersburg Review , for 
Nov . 1850. 





250 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


it may justly be supposed, that the affections creating 
the marriage relation, in the case of the pious, are 
raised by grace, out of the sphere of flesh and instinct 
into the sphere of spirit; and thus, although the mean¬ 
ing and intent of this institution in its earthly sense, 
comes to an end in death, the relation in its mystical 
and spiritual sense continues, and its affections, beauti¬ 
ful and holy on earth, are made perfect and permanent 
in heaven. 

The probable nature of the relation, and the pro¬ 
priety of it, which those thus united on earth will con¬ 
tinue to sustain to each other in heaven, may be farther 
illustrated to our minds. The relation of parents to 
their children, for instance, in much which that relation 
involves, comes to an end and is left behind, by the 
formation of new families, of which these children now 
themselves become the heads. The formation of these 
new relations does not, however, annihilate the filial 
and parental affections that were begotten in these re¬ 
lations which first existed; the children, though now 
in another relation to their own children, and this per¬ 
haps a relation in some respects more sweet and 
peculiar, nevertheless still feel themselves bound back 
to their own parents in undying affection. Having 
become parents themselves, they do not cease to be 
children; neither are their new parental feelings in¬ 
consistent with their old filial feelings — both dwell in 
the sweetest peace in the same heart. Mysterious truth, 
the parent is still the child! So, when those united 
on earth, in the marriage institution, shall have left 
behind them the lower ties of their earthly relations 
in death, the substance of those affections connected 


OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 


251 


with these relations now sanctified, may he elevated 
with them into the higher sphere of eternal life and 
love ; and though, in the resurrection, they marry not, 
and resume not their old relations in their earthly sense 
and intent, yet the affections engendered in this rela¬ 
tion, and made eternal by being made holy, may con¬ 
tinue to incline them toward each other with sacred 
preference in a higher state of being. We know that 
those holy affections which are the precious joy of the 
marriage state in this life, “ cease not with the decay 
of bodily vigor and beauty induced by old age itself, 
hut reach forward still, with a radiant light that grows 
only more mellow as it is less tinged with the colouring 
of sense, far down into the vale of yearswhy should 
we suppose it to end suddenly in the grave ? 

It is unreasonable, unphilosophical, and entirely 
averse to the general spirit of Christianity, that such 
a relation—not in form but in spirit, not in its earthly 
features, but in the affections which it involves—should 
ever come to an end. Death itself cannot break its 
bands asunder, nor take its cords from it. Beyond the 
grave in an endless life alone, can this mystery evolve 
fully its precious treasures. No shorter history can 
afford adequate scope for the full perfection of this 
relation — a relation which is grounded so deep in the 
elements and constitution of our nature — upon which 
the very existence of the race depends — which is 
strengthened by the mutual love of offspring as well 
as by the holy influences of grace — which covers so 
large and important a part of our earthly history — 
which streams its influences with such momentous 
power into all the other avenues and relations of life — 



252 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


and which finds its highest perfection in the life of 
religion, being made the symbol of its deepest myste¬ 
ries. (Eph. y.) It cannot be believed that the affec¬ 
tions begotten by such a relation and included in it, 
can in all the fulness of their meaning come to an end 
with the brief glare of a mortal life. To enable us to 
believe this, we require more than a thousand objec¬ 
tions like the one upon which we have made these ob¬ 
servations. 


ANOTHER OBJECTION. 


253 


CHAPTER XII. 


Jtotljer <fl)h|Ertinn ta tlje Snrtrtw nf leanralti 
IxJingititimt. 


“There shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying; 
neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are 
passed away .”—A Voice from Heaven , Rev. xxi. 4. 

It has been objected, that if we shall he able to 
know onr friends in heaven, we should have to miss 
some who will not be there. This, it has been thought, 
would introduce pain and distress into heaven; for it 
cannot be, it is supposed, that even in heaven we should 
he able to endure without sorrow the absence of our 
friends — especially the thought that they are in the 
world of despair. 

This objection, no doubt, more than all other consi¬ 
derations, causes persons to doubt the doctrine of future 
recognition. This difficulty, though perhaps in reality 
not the greatest, comes nevertheless more than any 
other home to the bosom of all; and it is by far the 
most difficult one to answer satisfactorily, because of 
those instinctive feelings which come in to obscure the 
judgment; thus hindering the force of argument, and 
22 




254 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


vastly magnifying the difficulty. It is not so much our 
minds, as our feelings, that give us trouble on this 
point. We will carefully examine this objection, be¬ 
lieving that the observations we shall make will entirely 
remove any unpleasant doubts that may have been en¬ 
tertained in regard to it. Let it, however, be distinctly 
borne in mind, that no objection, however formidable 
it may seem, can of itself prove this, or any other doc¬ 
trine, untrue.* God is master of all difficulties ; and, 
although w r e may not be able to see how they can be 
removed, they will nevertheless be removed if God so 
wills it. 

There are different ways in which the difficulty on 
which this objection rests may reasonably be supposed 
to be removed. We will present them in order; and 
though any one consideration may not in itself give 
full satisfaction, yet all taken together will, we hope, 
prove entirely conclusive. 

I. In death, all ties which are not sanctified, and 


* “ If casting up objections is a legitimate mode of deciding a 
question, we may form, and retort, the same objection, with more 
reason, against those who believe that we shall not know one another 
in heaven; for we may say, also, that not knowing the persons, we 
shall not know whether our parents or our friends are there; and 
this is likely to disturb the quiet and satisfaction of our minds; but 
to argue in this gross manner, is to confound heaven with the earth. 
Grief and displeasure can never be admitted in a paradise of joy 
and perfect happiness. In this glorious condition, our knowledge 
shall be so clear, our charity so pure, our love to God so fervent, 
that, as we shall love all things which God shall love, and where his 
image shall appear, so it shall not be possible for us to love them 
whom God shall hate, them who shall bear the marks and characters 
of the devil.” 



ANOTHER OBJECTION. 


255 


thus made eternal by the life and power of grace, must 
be dropped and left behind. 

There are many ties which are in no sense, and in 
no degree, gracious. Ties that have not been formed 
by the life of religion, and which are not sustained and 
pervaded by it. There are ties, in the formation of 
which religion has not in the least been recognized, and 
which have no religious end in view. All ties between 
saints and sinners are of this kind . These must perish 
in death. 

Let it be well remembered that even the ties of 
kindred are merely and entirely natural and instinc¬ 
tive, unless they are elevated and sanctified by grace. 
Though higher in degree they are the same in kind as 
the attachments of instinct in animal life. These warm 
affections rise entirely out of the bosom of nature, and 
have nothing moral in them until they are raised out 
of the sphere of nature into the sphere of grace by 
religion. Thus the affections of kindred and of friend¬ 
ship, where religion has not brought them under its 
power, remain entirely instinctive and natural. Take 
as an example the fond affection of a mother for her 
babe. “ Whence come those bursts of maternal tender¬ 
ness with which she is wont to caress the much-loved 
object ? Whence those expressions of heartfelt sympa¬ 
thy with which she enters into its pains and innocent 
pleasures — the promptness with which she administers 
to its many little wants — the unwearied assiduity with 
which she watches over it in the hour of sickness, and 
the bitter sorrow into which she is plunged as soon as 
death tears it from her fond embrace ? It is the im¬ 
pulse of animal nature—the flow and specific direction 


256 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


of a certain class of feelings, which are not to be ac¬ 
counted for on any principle of duty, or on any consi¬ 
deration of general humanity.” Are not in this case 
all religious or moral motives to love suspended by the 
strong flow of instinct and nature ? The heathen mo¬ 
ther does the same. The godless mother, dead in 
trespasses and in sins, does just so. Yea, do not animals 
caress and fondle their offspring in the same way ? 
Here then is nature, and nothing else. These affections 
are grounded in nature; but are capable of, and are 
intended to be, elevated and perfected in grace. These 
instinctive feelings are to he superseded by the holy 
life of moral love. If the mother be pious, these affec¬ 
tions are already under the power of grace; her affec¬ 
tions stoop into instinctive nature, hut rise at pleasure 
into the higher and holy life of grace. Instinct is 
glorified and made eternal. Natural love becomes 
moral. When that child grows up to an intelligent age, 
and becomes pious like its mother, its own instinctive 
affections will also rise from nature into grace. The 
life of Christ, the influences of the blessed Spirit, and. 
not mere instinctive nature, will then mediate between 
them, and be the highest and holiest media of their 
intercourse with each other. Grace in the heart of 
each will then rise to a level and flow together, and 
they will be one in Christ for ever as members of his 
mystical body. Nature, as it bound them before, will 
not be destroyed but absorbed and included in grace, 
and thus made eternal. The ties of kindred remaining, 
these new moral affections may frequently ebb and 
merge back into them and become sweetly human. 
Thus we see the difference between human affections, 


ANOTHER OBJECTION. 


257 


that are merely human, and human affections which 
are gracious and eternal, while they remain human 
still. 

Suppose, however, that the child, in the instance 
just supposed, should ripen in sin as it ripens in years, 
while its mother is pious. In that case the ties of instinct 
will still remain, and the mother will still continue to 
love her child with the same human love, and her love 
in the sphere of instinctive nature will be reciprocated 
by her child; but the higher life of grace, which alone 
can make these ties eternal, is wanting in the child; 
hence the tie which binds them cannot survive death. 
Nature and instinct, with all the attachments which 
rest on them, must perish. When the child dies, the 
cord of instinct is broken, and there being no basis for 
eternal affection common to both remaining, the rela¬ 
tion has loerished. The mother may grieve, and even 
suppose, while in this sphere of earthly imperfection, 
that she shall grieve in heaven because her child will 
not be thei-e; but she may be surprised at last, that 
her instinctive affections, so far as they were merely 
natural, to which alone the natural affections of her 
child gave response, are as if they had never existed. 
She never had any affection for her child as a Chris¬ 
tian ; the relation was of the earth, earthy, and must 
meet the fate of all earthly things. 

The same may be said of the ties of the marriage 
relation. The marriage cords are designed to be holy, 
and must be sanctified by the life of grace in order to 
fulfil their intent. They may be, and ought to be, 
mystical and holy; and they must be, in order to be 
eternal. How often, however, are they also merely 
22 * 


258 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


instinctive; yea, not even that in many cases, but 
merely prudential and arbitrary, sinking far beneath 
instinct into the unhallowed regions of nature, sense 
and sin! Even a religious basis is not recognized in 
them, but the whole relation is regarded as only a 
civil contract — a thing of the state, and not of the 
church—a thing of man, not of God—a thing of earth, 
not of heaven. No religious end is acknowledged in 
it. If the intent of this institution, in the view of such, 
extend beyond the Ioav consideration of personal pro¬ 
pensities, both in a bad and good sense, and contem¬ 
plate as its object the civil end of peopling the state, 
yet it never rises to the religious idea of peopling hea¬ 
ven, and of meeting one day in the land of eternal 
promise, a seed like the stars and the sands for multi¬ 
tude. Can affections having no higher, no purer basis, 
live for ever ? Certainly not. No more than sin itself, 
for they are imbedded and matured in sin. When, how¬ 
ever, these affections in the marriage relation rise from 
nature and sin into grace, so that this tie has indeed 
something in it which makes it an appropriate symbol 
of the union between Christ and His church, and be¬ 
tween believers and Christ, (Eph. v.) then, as in the 
case of the mother and child, they will be united, not 
in nature merely, but in grace — not in grace alone, 
but in nature and in grace. Nature will be sanctified 
in grace, and will finally be glorified and made eternal. 
Thus the ties and affections which enter into the na¬ 
tural relation of marriage will continue, but only be¬ 
cause they live for ever in the life and love of grace. 
This is a great, a solemn, a beautiful mystery! 

Suppose now, that the husband is unregenerate and 


ANOTHER OBJECTION. 


259 


the wife is pious; is it not plain that they may he 
united on earth in the lower life of nature, which is 
common to both, and even with much w T armth of affec¬ 
tion, and yet when both are dead, that which was com¬ 
mon with both is left behind with nature, and all the 
affections which rested on it will be as though they had 
not been ? She, the pious wife, never had any commu¬ 
nion with him, the unregenerate husband, in the new 
and higher life of grace; for there was nothing in him 
that could make response to her feelings in the sphere 
of religious affections. There never was any union 
between them in the eternal life of grace; how then 
can it be renewed and continue in heaven ? She may 
cherish his memory in grief for a wise purpose, while 
she lives; but when nature, with its instinctive attach¬ 
ments, dies with her, she will not be conscious in hea¬ 
ven of any sense of loss; should she even remember 
that such a relation once existed, she will have lost all 
her affinities for it, and feel no more pain from the 
remembrance of its existence than the saints of heaven 
can at the remembrance of those sins from which they 
are now washed in the blood of the Lamb. “ Neither 
shall there be any more pain; for the former things 
are passed away!” 

That there is this essential difference between affec¬ 
tions that lie in the sphere of nature and those which 
lie in the sphere of grace, no one who believes the 
scripture representations of this matter can for a mo¬ 
ment doubt. Indeed so insignificant, according to 
scripture, are the mere instinctive relations of nature 
in themselves, that, however lovely they may exhibit 
themselves in the social life of earth, they are never- 


260 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


theless perfect vanity. Like beautiful flowers of earth, 
they are praised by the traveller that hastens by, but 
they die where they bloomed. The formation of the 
marriage relation, in cases where it involves this diffi¬ 
culty, is absolutely forbidden. “ Only in the Lord,” 
is the apostolic injunction in regard to the formation 
of this sacred tie. In general, the forming of ties, 
with unbelievers or unregenerate persons, is called an 
“ unequal yoking togetherand it is asked with most 
emphatic earnestness: “ What fellowship hath righteous¬ 
ness with unrighteousness ? and what communion hath 
light with darkness ?” 2 Cor. vi. 14. Truly it is a 

yoking, not matching. It is a relation, but no fellow¬ 
ship. It is a mere outward conjunction, cold as the 
moon, which lacks entirely the lovely life and warmth 
of an inward union — and how can it survive death ? 

On the contrary, grace forms ties which do not de¬ 
stroy nature, but raise it up to a higher level. While 
it unites kindred and relatives more closely than ever, 
it takes into its embraces “ all saints,” and drops all 
sinners. So far do the ties in grace exceed all others, 
that when the sacred writers speak of them, they, for 
the time being, comparatively lose sight of all the 
earthly relations of kindred. In this sense the words 
of the Saviour, which some have even been tempted to 
censure as cold, become warmly and beautifully intelli¬ 
gible. “ While He yet talked with the people, behold, 
His mother and His brethren stood without, desiring to 
speak with Him. Then one said unto Him, Behold, 
thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to 
speak with thee. But He answered and said unto him, 
Who is my mother ? and who are my brethren ? And 


ANOTHER OBJECTION. 


261 


He stretched forth His hand toward His disciples, and 
said, Behold my mother and my brethren! For who¬ 
soever shall do the will of my Father which is in hea¬ 
ven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.” 
Matt. xii. 46-50. The Saviour did not intend by this 
expression coldly to disown His kindred — for, as we 
have seen in another place, He not only loved them, 
but He loved them particularly — but merely to inti¬ 
mate to them that there are ties higher than kindred; 
and that, while these affections still lived with Him, 
they lived in a higher sphere than mere instinctive na¬ 
ture : in the sphere of grace, in which He had strong 
affinities of love for all that did God’s will. 

Thus, then, we see, that as there is a natural body 
and also a spiritual body, so there are natural affec¬ 
tions and spiritual affections — and natural affections 
that may become spiritual. Those which rise out of 
nature will sink back again into nature, unless they 
are taken up into grace; and those, and those alone, 
which rise into grace, will live for ever. “ As is the 
earthly, such are they also that are earthly: and as is 
the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. 
And as we have borne the image of the earthly, we 
shall also bear the image of the heavenly. Now this 
I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the 
kingdom of God.” 1 Cor. xv. 48-50. Flesh and 
blood, and the earthly, in this passage, mean mere 
human nature without the renovation of grace by “ the 
Lord from heaven.” All relations and affinities, there¬ 
fore, in which a renovated saint may have stood to one 
of “ flesh and blood,” who bears only “the image of 
the earthly,” will be broken off and left behind in 


262 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


death, and consequently never become a source of pain 
and trouble in heaven. 

This answer of the objection under consideration, 
we feel sure, would be conclusive to all, were it not for 
the risings of natural feelings over reason and faith, 
while we yet know but in part, thus destroying in a 
great degree the force of the argument. This weakness 
of faith, and its disposition to flow in the stream of 
natural instinctive feeling, may more or less trouble us 
through life, as we are similarly troubled in the same 
way on other points; and it may be wisely so designed, 
in order to make us more zealous for the salvation of 
our friends and kindred; but we are sure that none of 
these painful yearnings of nature will follow us through 
the swellings of Jordan into the land of holy love and 
pure society. 

II. If we should even feel that the above mode of 
answering the objection is not satisfactory, and that 
these unsanctified instinctive affinities will not perish 
in death, we may resort to other considerations in order 
to get clear of any trouble which this difficulty may 
occasion our thoughts and feelings. We may suppose 
that God, who is superior to all difficulties, and with 
whom nothing is impossible, may interpose his power 
in some way unknown to us, in order to efface from the 
recollections of the saints all remembrance of any 
earthly relations which might awaken painful sensations 
in heaven. “It is surely,” says one, “neither irra¬ 
tional nor inconsistent with a becoming sense of human 
infirmity, to suppose that the recollection of an unwel¬ 
come event hereafter can be voluntarily expelled from 


ANOTHER OBJECTION. 


263 


the mind, or will have no other effect than to increase 
the gratitude of the redeemed, and enhance the joys 
of heaven. Standing on the mount of eternal safety, 
with what unspeakable delight may we conceive them 
to look down upon the valley of sin and humiliation 
beneath them ! every painful emotion being absorbed 
in the overflowings of joy and thankfulness to Him 
who redeemed them by His blood, and conducted them 
by His providence, to an incorruptible and unfading 
inheritance. And since the moral perfection to which 
they will then have attained forbids us to suppose that 
memory or any other faculty will be applied to a sinful 
or unworthy purpose, may we not presume that many 
of those recollections which now find a frequent, and, 
alas ! unwelcome entrance into their minds, to the great 
detriment of their peace and improvement, will find no 
place in the associations of eternity?” 

It is, moreover, not at all difficult to believe, that 
even without any miraculous interposition on the part 
of God, but just in the regular process of things, the 
remembrance of the lost may gradually fade from our 
memories. We see traces of this in this life. Those 
feelings of grief over the death of wicked friends which 
were so pungent, and almost intolerable at first, have 
gradually settled down into quiet resignation. Time 
flows on, and the wound is healed and forgotten. 
What even remains of this kind of sorrow in the heart 
in this world of infirmity and imperfection, may en¬ 
tirely disappear in heaven, as the worm drops his gro¬ 
velling attachments as soon as he rises into the nobler 
capacity of a light-winged inhabitant of the upper air. 
“ The circumstance of their being removed out of sight 


264 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


of their former friends "will probably cause their fate 
to be contemplated with less lively and pungent feelings. 
Further, the lapse of time will probably co-operate with 
absence, and eventually obliterate the remembrance of 
them from the memories of the blessed.”* 

We will venture the remark that it is proved by ex¬ 
perience that in this world the cords of affection which 
bind pious persons to impious relations are gradually 
weakened, until at length they have scarcely any power 
except what remains of the force of instinctive feeling, 
and the mechanical power of habit. Upon the same 
principle that unreasonable creatures, long yoked toge¬ 
ther in the same routine of service, feel a kind of ne¬ 
cessity of being together, so these, though the cord 
which binds them to each other is not love and inward 
union, but mere outward habit. They chime together, 
not in the free acts of will, but like the wheels and 
cogs of machinery; and, like it, their working together 
becomes daily more loose and rickety in their inward 
attachments. This process of inward alienation will 
be greatly accelerated by the disorganization which the 
rupture of death produces ; and, as in heaven the saints 
will have more intolerance to sin than they can possi¬ 
bly have here, what remains at death of this instinctive 
and habitual affection will be cast back to forgetfulness 
with a kind of abrupt and holy violence. Or, if even 
the remembrance of sinful friends should be, for a time, 
compatible with heavenly felicity, the unpleasantness, 
(we have no better word,) of such remembrance would 
gradually lead to entire forgetfulness. 


* Mant. 



ANOTHER OBJECTION. 


265 


We find that in this world events which afford us no 
pleasure are not revolved in our minds, and thus by 
degrees fade from our recollection, while such as are 
pleasant fill their place and become prominent in our 
memories, though they may not have been so when 
they transpired. It is upon this principle, and by this 
process, that many of the sins of a Christian’s past 
life are graciously made to fade back into dim forget¬ 
fulness, and finally into entire oblivion. Thus the past 
life of the saints, so far as it is marked by any thing 
that is not meet to enter the heavenly world with them, 
is followed up by the shades of dark annihilation, while 
before them in a hopeful and cloudless heaven the sweet 
stars arise as an eternal protest against the darkness 
of earth, and an ever-recurring promise of brighter and 
purer realms on high. 

III. In this world, the grief of those who lose im¬ 
penitent relatives by death is much assuaged by a kind 
of “ hope against hope” that they are perhaps after all 
saved and in happiness. It has been suggested that 
this sweet and consoling uncertainty may extend into 
the future life. Heaven is spacious. When we consi¬ 
der the “ multitudes which no man can number,” which 
John saw, when he saw heaven opened eighteen hun¬ 
dred years ago — when we add to their number all who 
have since died in the faith, including all infants, which 
are more than one-half of the human race — and when 
we still add to these all who shall yet be saved from 
the earth, especially in the latter-day glory, when a 
nation shall be born in a day — how perfectly beyond 
all comprehension must be the magnitude of the hea- 
23 


266 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


venly hosts, and how almost infinite must be those 
realms of light in which they dwell. Well has the 
Saviour said, as if to insure accommodations to the 
countless hosts of the redeemed, “ in my Father’s 
house are many mansions.” Whether these many man¬ 
sions are to he viewed as adapted to different degrees 
of glory and happiness, or merely as places of exten¬ 
sive accommodation for so many children of God, in 
either case it affords room in some degree to extend 
the sweet suspense alluded to into the heavenly world. 
“The lot of some,” says bishop Mant, “may be cast 
in some of these ‘ mansions’, and of others in others; 
and hence there may be room for imagining that some 
are in a state of happiness, though they he not brought 
to the knowledge of their former relations and friends.” 

May not this thought be the first to enter the mind 
by way of reconciling it to the absence of some remem¬ 
bered relatives, if so be that some faint remembrance 
of these instinctive ties should even revive with the 
future life of the saints. Then gradually, and by a 
process entirely natural, the onward flow of time and 
of heavenly joys may obliterate all recollection of them. 
Memory, in this life, does not retain all that it has 
known; and may not this feature of memory, which 
we here regard an imperfection, become a real perfec¬ 
tion in heaven, while it drops gradually into forgetful¬ 
ness all its unpleasant associations. 

IV. We have positive and actual evidence that the 
knowledge of the fate of those that are lost, even where 
affection for them once was strong, is not incompatible 
with the full and happy enjoyment of heavenly felicity. 


ANOTHER OBJECTION. 


267 


The Saviour, for instance, is perfectly happy in hea¬ 
ven, with a full knowledge of the situation of the lost, 
and yet He once loved them. Will any one say that 
His love for them was not once as strong as ours can 
possibly be for any of our friends ? He certainly did 
for these sinners what none of us would do for our 
kindred, while they are enemies to us. “ He sticketh 
closer than a brother.” Yet on account of their final 
impenitency his feelings toward them have undergone 
a change; so that though He once distressed Himself 
on their account, their situation does not now interfere 
with His heavenly felicity. Once their condition cost 
Him tears, but now He weeps no more! May not we 
expect a similar change to take place in our feelings ? 
Now, nature rebels against that thought, and is far 
from desiring such a change; yet this is not the first 
time that God’s goodness and grace have done for us 
far better than our wishes. 

The same may be said of the angels in glory. They 
once loved those angels which are now fallen. They 
know also their doom and present situation. Who will 
say that the love for each other which reigned in the 
holy hearts of angels, before the fall of some, was not 
as strong and tender as kindred love on earth can pos¬ 
sibly be — especially as all earthly affection is tainted 
more or less by sin. Yet we know that their joys in 
heaven are not for one moment interrupted by painful 
thoughts of their lost companions. In like manner 
also angels in heaven are acquainted with the situation 
of lost spirits of men — those in whom they were inter¬ 
ested, over whose repentance they waited to rejoice; 
and though they are better acquainted than we can 


268 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


possibly be with the deep woes of the second death, 
yet they weep not, nor grieve, over their hapless fate. 
They contemplate the judgments of a righteous God, 
not with regret and sorrow, but with humility and 
adoring reverence. 

Though we may not feel ourselves able to decide 
correctly as to the way and manner in which this 
matter is adjusted, yet seeing that a similar relation 
between Christ, angels, and the lost, involves no diffi¬ 
culty, we have satisfactory reason to rest calmly in the 
patience of faith, and not to suffer difficulties which we 
see have been and can be removed weaken or disturb 
our faith in the consoling doctrine of heavenly recog¬ 
nition. 

Y. The last, and perhaps by far the most important 
consideration we have to offer by way of answering the 
objection before us, is that in heaven there will be such 
entire sympathy between us and God, that our wills 
will fall in entirely and cheerfully with His will. In 
the language of another: “ We shall have no separate 
desires or inclinations from Him. We shall see that 
all He does is wisest and best, and deserving of our 
unqualified approbation. Here we not unfrequently 
revolt against His appointments, because we bear with¬ 
in us the remains of a corrupt nature; or because we 
do not fully comprehend His designs; or because in 
our hearts the affection for God has not that superiority 
over our affection for the objects of earth which it ought 
to have. But in heaven, where not only the dominion, 
but even the existence of depravity, shall be destroyed 
in our souls — in heaven, where we shall so far com- 


ANOTHER OBJECTION. 


269 


prehend the reason of God’s conduct as to perceive 
that his attributes must be destroyed if he acted other¬ 
wise—in heaven, where love to the creature will justly 
be subordinated to love to the Creator, our wills shall 
be so absorbed in God’s, as to form but one with it; 
and, of course, no murmur will escape — no pang rend 
our hearts — for any of his dealings with those whom 
we loved on earth.”* 

That such unity of our wills with the divine will can 
take place, as entirely to change, not only our natural 
feelings, but even some of those affections which are 
in other circumstances seemingly pious, is evident from 
the case of David’s praying for the destruction of his 
enemies. Piety teaches us to pray for our enemies 
under ordinary circumstances, and forbids a vindictive 
spirit toward them; and in no way can this conduct of 
David, which so often comes to light in the Psalms, be 
reconciled with the Christian spirit, except upon the 
principle that his soul had risen into such entire union 
with God, and sympathy with His honour, that he felt 
that God was injured in his own injuries, and thus the 
breathing forth of prayer for their destruction was but 
the going forth of the spirit of God’s justice through 
him. The second table of the law, which says, “ love 
thy neighbour as thyself,” was, in the spirit of David, 
taken up into the first, which commanded him to love 
God above all. This entitled him, in very deed, to the 
appellation of “a man after God’s own heart.” 

This same sense of entire union with the will of God, 
which exhibits itself so complete in the Psalmist, is in 
a lesser degree begun in all saints on earth, and will 


23* 


* Kerr. 



270 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


become perfect with their perfection in heaven. The 
martyrs have shown it, in hating comparatively their 
own life and their own bodies, that they might not 
break unity with the divine will. If our desire to con¬ 
tinue in union with the divine will can thus induce us 
cheerfully to dismiss our own life, will not the same 
spirit, possessed in a still higher degree in heaven, 
enable us to dismiss from our affections those of our 
friends whose flesh and life were not certainly nearer 
to us than our own, when we know them to be the 
enemies of God in heart ? Alas for us, if we do not 
meet in us this willingness ! In that case we shall never 
find ourselves in heaven; for, “if any man come to 
me, and hate not — (how strong is this expression !) — 
and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and 
children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own 
life also, he cannot be my disciple !” Matt. x. 37. The 
sense of this passage is strongly and beautifully in 
place here. The meaning of it evidently is, that we 
must so love God, and so love what he loves, that if 
even our attachments to our nearest kindred should in¬ 
terfere with this love, we must withdraw our affections 
from them. Is this the feeling of him who would sit 
in heaven and weep for God’s enemies, or grieve at the 
exercise of His justice, even if those enemies are our 
nearest kindred according to the flesh ? This, which, 
to our earthly sense, seems a hard requirement, be¬ 
comes not only easy, but even a delight, to those wdio 
love God supremely, and “ who walk not after the flesh 
but after the spirit.” 

There is a fine example of this requirement and its 
complete fulfilment recorded in Leviticus, x. 1-8. Ha- 


ANOTHER OBJECTION. 


271 


dab and Abihu, the two sons of Aaron, sinned in offer¬ 
ing strange fire before the Lord, which he commanded 
not. Eire went out from the Lord and devoured them, 
so that they died. This was a severe stroke on Aaron, 
their father; but when Moses told him that this had 
happened in accordance with God’s declared will, that 
he might be sanctified in all that came nigh to him, 
and glorified in the eyes of all people, “ Aaron held 
his peace.” Moses commanded two of Aaron’s cousins 
to carry the young men out of the camp. But what 
seems most of all severe to the sympathies of flesh and 
blood, is, that Aaron their father, and his two remain¬ 
ing sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, the brethren of the two 
dead young men, were forbidden by Moses to mourn or 
grieve for their kindred in this their dreadful fate ! 
“ Uncover not your heads, neither rend your clothes, 
lest ye die, and lest wrath come upon all the people.” 
No, not a tear for the enemies of the Lord, w T hen He 
judgeth them, even though they be your children and 
your brethren ! — lest ye show that your mind is not 
with God’s mind, your will not as His will. “ And they 
did according to the word of Moses !” 

Is this possible on earth, where imperfection, like a 
dark veil, covers and obscures our complete knowledge 
of God’s wisdom and love — where all our affections 
are tainted with some corrupting instincts of remaining 
unsanctified nature; and shall it not much rather be 
in heaven, where all the reasons of God’s dealings with 
us shall be more fully known—where all our infirmities 
shall be left behind, and where we shall be “ in the 
light as he is in the light.” Surely then nothing will 
hinder us from falling in fully with all His ways; we 


272 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


shall approve, not only what we now see to he right, 
and what we now feel able to approve; but, forgetting 
all creatures, and filled with the one idea of God, great, 
wise and good, we shall be able to join heartily in the 
heavenly exclamation : “ Great and marvellous are thy 
works, Lord God Almighty; just and right are ALL 
thy ways, thou king of saints.” 

Fear not, the prospect of the realms of woe 

Shall mar thy bliss, or thence sad thoughts arise 
To blunt thy sense of heavenly ecstasies. 

There, if thy heart with warm devotion glow 
Meet for thy place, ’t will solace thee to know 
No friend of thine, ’mid those keen agonies, 

In that dark prison-house of torment lies; 

For none is there but is of God the foe, 

An alien thus from thee. The ties of blood, 

And earth’s most sacred bonds, are but a twine 
Of gossamer, compared with what is owed 
To Him, the Lord of all! On Him recline; 

He shall thy heart of every care unload, 

He bid thy day with cloudless lustre shine. 

Mant. 


IN ITS PRACTICAL EFFECTS. 


273 


CHAPTER XIII. 


$jlt flmtrittt nf JStatraltj iUrngnitura in its 'prartiml 
iffKts. 


Oar dying- friends come o’er us like a cloud 
To damp our brainless ardors; and abate 
That glare of life, which often blinds the wise. 

Our dying friends are pioneers, to smooth 
Our rugged path to death, to break those bars 
Of terror and abhorrence, nature throws 
’Cross our obstructed way; and thus, to make 
Welcome as safe, our port from every storm. 

Young. 

“ What good ?”— though this is not the most import¬ 
ant question to be asked in the investigation of a doc¬ 
trine, it nevertheless deserves some consideration, in 
bringing our minds to a conclusion in respect to its 
merits. If a doctrine have a good practical tendency, 
it is a presumption in its favor. Error has no such 
tendency. It is of the earth, earthy. It always tends 
to lead the mind and heart towards the seen, the mate¬ 
rial, the temporal. It tends to beget a cold and scep¬ 
tical indifference towards the future, and the eternal. 
It does not increase the warmth of our feelings towards 




274 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


realities that lie beyond the reach of sense. Error is 
necessarily negative,, and of course destructive. It 
leans not on faith, but on sight. Hence it always comes 
to an end by running out into fruitlessness. The best 
service it renders to man is when all its effects die out 
of his heart. 

Truth is fruitful in good; and we have the Saviour’s 
own authority for applying to this doctrine, as to all 
others, the test: “ By their fruits ye shall know them.” 
If the fruit is good, the doctrine must be good and 
true. We have therefore a two-fold object in view, in 
introducing this concluding chapter, on the practical 
tendencies of this doctrine; while, on the one hand, it 
will add another argument in favor of its truth, it will 
also aid us in making a useful application of it. 

We would earnestly ask, what bad influence the be¬ 
lief of this doctrine can have on those who hold to it ? 
We can think of none. We can, however, think of 
many good influences which it sheds over the heart. 
This tree yields only good fruit. We can say of it, as 
the spouse did of Christ, the tree of Life: “ I sat un¬ 
der his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was 
sweet to my taste.” As the strongest influences are 
always most gentle and silent, we can only describe 
them in their most prominent features, leaving the 
mind to fill out the more delicate and lovely details of 
the picture. 

I. A warm faith in this doctrine has a tendency to 
elevate, strengthen, and purify all our earthly affec¬ 
tions. In this busy, bustling, and jostling life, where 
self-interest and worldliness are such prominent factors, 


IN ITS PRACTICAL EFFECTS. 


275 


there is great danger that friendship and love he re¬ 
garded as mere matters of earthly convenience. Amid 
these mercenary influences the higher affections of the 
soul become gradually carnalized, and are soon valued, 
like all things of earth, merely for their present use. 
Even kindred are often cast coldly away, because they 
are deemed unprofitable in an earthly point of view. 
After the manner of Ephraim, “lovers are hired,” who 
love while it yields advantage to them, and cease when 
the pay ceases; or are themselves dismissed when no 
more needed. Thus there is a strong tendency to hinge 
the friendships of life upon the low motives of prudence 
and policy. 

Is it not quite natural that such debasing tendencies 
should appear, where ties of friendship and even of 
kindred are supposed to end with earth ? Of what use 
can that be, which begins and ends on earth, but to 
serve earthly purposes ? If friendships do not extend 
beyond the grave, it is difficult to prove that they 
are any more worthy of being cherished than other 
interests which contribute only to earthly convenience 
and profit. How degrading, however, is this to those 
ties which are so much praised in poetry, music, elo¬ 
quence and religion! Just as intellect is degraded 
when it is not animated by a life and light from hea¬ 
ven, so friendship, -when confined to this life, is but as 
a crazed wanderer, who for our attention returns us 
only an idiot’s meaningless gaze. 

How elevating to our affections, on the other hand, 
is the thought that friendships are eternal if pure; that 
the ties we form on earth, on virtuous and holy princi¬ 
ples, will continue through death, and be made perfect 


276 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


and permanent in heaven! This makes the cultivation 
of friendship a high aim. Even the pursuit of know¬ 
ledge, so far as it has merely this world in view, and is 
unsanctified by religion, is low compared with this; for 
“ charity never faileth: but whether there be prophe¬ 
cies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they 
shall cease ; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish 
away.” All our intercourse with our friends will be 
more holy and heavenly, if we regard them as those 
who shall be ours in heaven as well as upon earth. 
“ The addition of a good friend or relative will be the 
addition of one who will share with us the joys of im¬ 
mortality ; who will enter with us into the city of the 
living God, and be our everlasting companion in 
glory.” 

The sentiment uttered by the pious Baxter, in rela¬ 
tion to this subject, commends itself as true, to all who 
are truly pious, and who cannot be content to love what 
must remain on earth and die. “ I must confess, as 
the experience of my own soul, that the expectation 
of loving my friends in heaven principally kindles my 
love to them on earth. If I thought that I should 
never know them, and consequently never love them 
after this life is ended, I should in reason number them 
with temporal things, and love them as such. But I 
now delight to converse with my pious friends, in a 
firm persuasion that I shall converse with them for 
ever; and I take comfort in those of them that are 
dead or absent, as believing I shall shortly meet them 
in heaven, and love them with a heavenly love that 
shall there be perfected.” 


IN ITS PRACTICAL EFFECTS. 277 

II. Not only will the belief in eternal friendship 
elevate and refine our social affections, and cause us to 
love our friends more tenderly and more holily, but it 
will induce us also to see the importance of forming 
only pious friendships. There is a strange recklessness 
in this respect prevailing. Not only are many of the 
common friendships of life formed without any refer¬ 
ence to religion, but even marriage — if such 4 unequal 
yokings’ can he called marriages — are often formed 
between children of Christ and children of Belial! 
Such connections would not he formed as they are, 
were there a deep heartfelt belief that true love and 
friendship are eternal. There is evidently in such 
cases no serious reflection as to the final fate of these 
ties in death. 

On this point nothing can be said more appropriate 
than the following sentiments of Dr. Price. 44 How 
shocking must it be to believe that our dearest intimate 
is one whom we cannot expect to see hereafter in bliss, 
one who wants the love of God, and who is hastening 
fast to eternal punishment ? How can any one think 
of having in his bosom an enemy to the order of the 
world, and a child of perdition and ruin ? With what 
pain must an attentive person look upon such a friend, 
and what concern must he feel for him ? On this ac¬ 
count, were irreligious friends to allow themselves time 
enough for reflection, they would necessarily be the 
causes of the greatest trouble to one another. Did 
they duly attend to their own circumstances, the dan¬ 
ger they are in, the precariousness of life, and the 
nearness of the time when they shall be separated, 
never again to meet, except in that world where joy is 
24 


278 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


never known, and hope never comes; did they, I say, 
properly attend to these things, they would surely he 
incapable of bearing one another: their love would be 
turned into anguish, and their friendship into horror!” 

Where, however, the belief in eternal ties is active, 
no such unholy fellowships will be formed. There will 
be a holy shudder at the very idea of living in mar¬ 
riage, through life, with “ a vessel of wrath, fitted for 
destructionwith not only the danger of being cor¬ 
rupted by a relation so intimate and so evil, but with 
the sure prospect also that ties which now make “ a 
fair show in the flesh” of being love, will end at death 
in an eternal blank ! 

Thus a firm and devout faith in this doctrine would 
not only greatly change our notions of the value of 
friends, but also of the nature of friendship. The light 
of love w T ould then have to be the light of piety; and 
all other dazzling qualities would be regarded but as 
the false light of a splendid cheat! Love toward others 
would then be regarded by us — what it really is — the 
love of God in us; and no ties would be either formed 
or valued except such as have the prospect of extending 
into an endless life, to be renewed and perfected in the 
joyous and holy communion of the saints in light. 

III. The belief in heavenly recognition has also a 
tendency to bring us more strongly and sweetly under 
the power of heavenly realities and attractions. 

We think of heaven but vaguely unless we think of 
it as the abode of sainted friends. Though our Saviour 
is the chief attraction of the place, yet He, as the light 
of the upper temple, reveals to us also the saints as the 


IN ITS PRACTICAL EFFECTS. 


279 


happy worshippers; thus presenting to our minds these 
subordinate attractions, begetting in us a kind of fami¬ 
liar home-feeling, and giving to heavenly joys a defi¬ 
niteness which they would not otherwise have. When 
we hear of a distant country, especially if we hear 
much in praise of it, we think and speak of it, it is 
true, yet not in the same way as we do when once some 
of our dearest friends have gone to dwell there; then 
our thoughts and feelings assume a definiteness in re¬ 
ference to it, which they had not before. So in regard 
to heaven, when once we regard it as the home of our 
sainted friends. Then it is, to us, no more heaven in a 
vague and general idea, but it is heaven as the abode 
of our departed friends — it is heaven as the place 
where we expect soon to rejoin them; — this gives dis¬ 
tinctness and intensity to all our thoughts of it. Then 
our hearts transfer themselves to it, and live in it. 
Then, in faith, 

Our dying friends come o’er us like a cloud 

To damp our brainless ardors; and abate 

That glare of life, which often blinds the wise. 

Much is gained as help to devout reverence and tender 
piety in thus drawing around us the solemn mysteries 
of eternity; especially so, if we can recognize by faith 
the alluring smiles of friends, looking out upon us 
through the cloudy veil which partly hides its myste¬ 
ries, like the golden light through the vista of clouds 
which hang along the evening sky. The love which 
we bear towards the saints in the triumphant church, 
draws us towards them with humble reverence. It is a 
sweet attraction, which causes us to linger, in affec- 


280 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


tionate longings, on the confines of the shadowy spirit- 
land. It gives us an indescribable desire for their 
“silent company.” It is said that the home-sickness 
of the Swiss soldiers in foreign lands was often so 
strong that they must return to their beloved home in 
the Alps or die; all was dreary and tasteless to them 
in absence, while the “ sweet home” of their childhood 
hovered in smiles around them in visions of the day, and 
in dreams of the night. So it is with those to whom 
heaven is a Fatherland — the bright home-like abode 
of kindred and friends. It brings with it an unquench¬ 
able desire to leave this foreign land and return home. 
It familiarizes us with death as a narrow crossing. It 
keeps the power of eternal things near us; and, to a 
great extent, converts the valley of the shadow of death 
into gardens of the Lord, through which lies the Fa¬ 
ther’s pleasant highway, by which His children return 
to Him and to each other. 

We very much need influences like these to break in 
upon the lower attachments of life, which are too prone 
to detain our thoughts and feelings. Even when we 
very well know, in theory, what value to set upon 
earthly things, we need also to learn the value of hea¬ 
venly things, in order to enable us to feel practically 
the vanity of earth. The Poet has truly said, 

’ Tis, by comparison, an easy task 

Earth to despise; but, to commune with heaven— 

’Tis not so easy. 

As already suggested, it is true that Christ, and the 
things which He has prepared for us, ought to be to us 
the chief attraction of heaven, and we shall no doubt 


IN ITS PRACTICAL EFFECTS. 


281 


find it to be so when we get there; but while we are 
in this world of imperfections, God graciously stoops 
to our infirmities, and draws us also by the love of our 
beloved friends as with the “ cords of a man.” “ The 
memory of the sainted dead hovers, a blessed and puri¬ 
fying influence, over the hearts of men. At the grave 
of the good, so far from losing heart, the spiritually- 
minded find new strength. They weep, but as they 
weep, they look down into the sepulchre, and behold 
angels sitting, and the dead come nearer, and are 
united to them by a fellowship more intimate than that 
of blood.” 

How soul-subduing is the thought, that but a thin 
veil, which a moment may lift, divides us from the con¬ 
scious fellowship of our beloved dead! How solemn 
the thought that, being raised into a higher sphere, 
they may even now know much more of us than we do 
of them. How like devotion does the place become to 
us, when we sit alone and summon around us their 
familiar faces; or, when we think of them in their 
white robes, with harps and palms, bending before the 
throne or walking in “ heavenly pastime.” It makes 
us feel almost like the Publican, who stood afar off, 
casting a wishful and reverent look towards the holiest 
place, but conscious of his unworthiness to enter it. A 
sweet penitence comes over our hearts, and we look 
immediately to Jesus for a fresh application of his 
cleansing blood, that we may be made more like those 
into whose holy society we expect soon to be intro¬ 
duced. When the spirit of earthliness and sense hangs 
too heavily upon our affections and thoughts, so that 
we cannot rise to the contemplation of heavenly at- 
24 * 


282 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


tractions as we desire, the prayer of the Poet is ex¬ 
cusable. 

Ye holy dead, now come around, 

In season more profound; 

And through the barriers of our sense 
Shed round your calming influence; 

In silence come and solitude, 

With thoughts that o’er the mourner brood. 

IV. The belief in heavenly recognition presents a 
strong and touching motive to piety. 

How can we, who have sainted friends, continue to 
live in an unregenerate and sinful state ? We have 
heard of one, who declared that nothing troubled him 
more in his sinful state than the thought of his mother 
in heaven! He feared that she knew of it; and he 
also dreaded an eternal separation from her! Do we 
believe that our separation from our friends will be an 
eternal one, unless we repent and become pious ? Can 
we be content one moment longer in sin, when we 
firmly believe that, should we die in our present condi¬ 
tion, the look which we cast upon the face of our dear 
friend before the coffin-lid was closed, was the last look 
for ever! — that those eyes, that countenance, shall 
beam on us no more ! — that where he is we can never 
come! Who can endure this searching thought, and 
continue to sin on earth while his bosom friend is sing¬ 
ing in heaven ? Alas ! that such infatuation should be 
found on earth! yet there are many who have parents, 
brothers, sisters, husbands, wives, and children in hea¬ 
ven, whom they will never see! But is not this in 
spite of this touching motive to piety? Is it not a 
strange madness ? 


IN ITS PRACTICAL EFFECTS. 


283 


Who would not strive to win a heaven 
Where all we love shall live again? 

God graciously designs that the death of our friends, 
and our desire to meet them again, should lead us to 
piety. “No one dieth to himself.” Their death, as 
well as their life, is in this way to he of real service 
to us. It is most beautifully said — who can read it 
without tenderness ? — 


Smitten friends 

Are angels sent on errands full of love; 

For us they languish, and for us they die. 

And shall they languish, shall they die in vain ? 
Ungrateful shall we grieve their hovering shades, 

Which wait the revolution in our hearts? 

Shall we disdain their silent soft address; 

Their posthumous advice, and pious prayer; 

Senseless as herds which graze their hallowed graves, 
Tread under foot their agonies and groans, 

Frustrate their anguish, and destroy their deaths? 

In many cases this sweet motive to piety has led to 
blessed results—no doubt much oftener than is known. 
“Several years ago,” says a Pastor, “I was called to 
attend the funeral of a child Jive years of age. She 
had sickened and died suddenly. The father I knew 
not, except that he was an infidel. This child had at¬ 
tended my Sabbath-school, and she had left behind 
some interesting conversation with several members of 
the church. This, after the child had died, was com¬ 
municated to the bereaved mother for her consolation. 
At the funeral the mother appeared more deeply in¬ 
terested in the subject of her own salvation than that 
of the loss of her child. The next Sabbath this family 


284 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


were at my church, and requested prayers that their 
afflictions might he sanctified. They continued to at¬ 
tend my church Sabbath after Sabbath, and on the 
fifth Sabbath the father became hopefully pious. Soon 
after this his wife became pious, and then a sister, and 
then a young lady residing in the family; and the 
father, mother, sister, and young lady, all, on the same 
Sabbath, made a public profession of their faith in the 
Lord Jesus Christ. That father is now a pillar in the 
church. This great change in that family was pro¬ 
duced instrumentally by the death of that child !** 
Following their sainted child into a holy world, they 
felt that they were not prepared to meet it there, and 
this led to deep and saving penitence. Thus, 

Heaven gives us friends to bless the present scene, 
Resumes them to prepare us for the next. 

There are none on earth so near to us as our chil¬ 
dren. Yet there are no bereavements that occur more 
frequently than these. Half the human race die in in¬ 
fancy — all grave-yards have more small graves than 
large ones. There are few parents, therefore, that have 
not wept at little graves — few that have not infants in 
heaven! How tenderly they plead, that, since they 
cannot return to us, we should prepare to come to them. 
Reader, have you a little white-robed warbler in the 
celestial choir? Are you content to see his face no 
more for ever ? If you die in your present unregenerate 
state, where your child is you can never come! 

Those holy gates for ever bar 
Pollution, sin and shame; 

And none will ever enter there, 

But followers of the Lamb. 


IN ITS PRACTICAL EFFECTS. 


285 


Far from that blessed abode of innocence and love 
lies that gloomy land where dwell all the enemies of 
God. Between you and your child “ there is a great 
gulf fixed.” The stroke of death which has separated 
you, has separated you for ever, except you become 
pious. Ought not the belief in future recognition press 
you, in the tender hour of bereavement and sorrow, to 
decide at once for Christ and heaven — and for an 
eternal reunion with your sainted child? There are 
your treasures, there let your heart be also. What you 
do, do quickly — eternity is drawing nigh ! 

V. The doctrine of heavenly recognition is very 
consoling to the pious under bereavement. 

How often has it been whispered into the ear of 
grief! The thought that the separation made by death 
between us and our friends is for ever, adds the sting 
of despair to the wound of affliction; but the hope of 
reunion after life’s remaining ills are past, is like heal¬ 
ing oil to the wounded heart. Our faith follows them 
within the veil, and sees them blest. Instead of a sad 
thought, it is rather a pleasant one. For, 

’Tis sweet, as year by year we lose 
Friends out of sight, in faith to muse, 

How grows in Paradise our store. 

“ Is not the bitterness of their death thus removed, 
and its sting extracted? Can we not with Job say, 
4 The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; bless¬ 
ed be the name of the Lord ?’ Can we not with Aaron 
exclaim, c It is the Lord, let him do as seemeth to him 
good?’ Can we not with David rejoicingly declare, 


286 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION 


4 They cannot come to us, but we can go to them V 
Yes, we can go to them. 4 They are not lost, but gone 
before.’ There, in that world of light, and love, and 
joy, they await our coming. There do they beckon us 
to ascend. There do they stand ready to welcome us. 
There may we meet them, when a few more suns or 
seasons shall have cast their departing shadows upon 
our silent grave. Then shall our joy be full and our 
sorrows ended, and all tears wiped from our eyes.”* 

What greater consolation can such have, who have 
departed children, than to be able to say in the full 
assurance of faith: 44 1 know that my Redeemer liveth 
and then, looking heavenward, add the Saviour’s words 
in reference to their children: 44 Of such is the king¬ 
dom of heaven !” 44 We have known,” says a Moravian 
missionary in Labrador— 44 We have known what it is 
to mourn over the loss of beloved children, having ac¬ 
companied two to their resting-place during our service 
in this distant land. I was once standing by the grave 
of my departed children, under a brilliant sun and 
cloudless sky, when suddenly a light shadow passed 
over the green turf. Looking up for the cause, I be¬ 
held a snow-white gull winging her lofty flight through 
the air. The thought immediately struck me — thus it 
is with the dear objects of my mournful remembrance. 
Here indeed lies the shadow, but above is the living 
principle. Nor was the reflection without comfort to 
my wounded spirit, since of such is the kingdom of 
heaven.” 

The thought that many of our friends have gone be- 


* Smyth. 



IN ITS PRACTICAL EFFECTS. 


287 


fore us, and that we shall shortly rejoin them in hea¬ 
ven, must be peculiarly animating and consoling to us, 
at that trying hour when we ourselves shall be called 
to die. Death will be but going away from friends on 
earth to join a greater number in heaven; and, in ad¬ 
dition to this, we have also the assurance that even 
those we leave behind will soon follow us. Death, in 
that case, will be like going home. It will be but a 
short farewell to those we leave behind, and an eternal 
reunion with those who have gone before. Dying will 
be as when one taketh rest in sleep — and oh ! what a 
blissful waking! 

The same reasons which induce us to believe in a 
final reunion with our sainted friends, encourage and 
warrant us also in the belief that they now remember 
us and feel interested in us. This idea too is full of 
consolation ! It is sweet to be remembered by friends 
on earth, but how much more so to be assured that we 
live in the memory of those who are now saints in light. 
Being raised higher, their interest in us must increase 
in proportion as they become acquainted with those 
heavenly joys which await us also, and which they 
already possess. As they approach towards their per¬ 
fection, their benevolence and love must increase; and, 
when we consider that we think most about our friends 
when we ourselves are most blest, we cannot but be¬ 
lieve that they regard us with special concern. To 
have friends in heaven, then, is to have an inheritance 
in which we may well delight, and after which we are 
sweetly constrained to long. We, who are heirs of 
such celestial treasures, may enter fully into the spirit 
of the Poet’s holy boasting — 


288 


HEAVENLY RECOGNITION. 


My boast is not, that I deduce my birth 
From loins enthroned, and rulers of the earth; 

But higher far my proud pretensions rise— 

The son of parents passed into the skies! 

Adieu, reader — this is the end ! A kind of lovely 
loneliness gathers around me, as I am about to lay 
down my pen. Withdraw not your mysterious pre¬ 
sence from me, ye sainted watchers ! Ye have been 
an host around me, that came at the call of faith, in 
those loveliest hours of my life, while engaged in set¬ 
ting down the thoughts of this book. Look still on 
me through the veil, and let me still feel the calming 
influence of your blessed communion. Leave me not 
alone! The earth is gloomy and sad from the curse. 
It shines but as a cold moon, with a borrowed light. 
My soul is weary of these storm-swept solitudes out¬ 
side of holy Eden. Hail! ye far-off lands of light. 
Hail! ye happy dwellers in the peaceful Salem of 
purity and love ! “Oh that I had wings like a dove ! 
for then would I fly away, and be at rest.” 

What remains eternity will reveal! 


THE END. 


LINDSAY & BLAKISTON’S PUBLICATIONS 


A CHOICE SELECTION OF PROSE QUOTATIONS. 


TREASURED THOUGHTS 

FROM 

FAVOURITE AUTHORS, 

COLLECTED AND ARRANGED 

B Y 

CAROLINE MAY, 

EDITOR OF “THE AMERICAN FEMALE POETS,” ETC. 

“The ‘treasured thoughts’ that come from thence, 

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But sterling coins for free expense, 

The use of every day: 

A currency for inner life 
To keep its revenue, 

Of joy and sorrow, love and strife, 

In balance straight and true.” 

A neat 12mo. volume. 


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This is a collection of miscellaneous extracts, which betoken a cultivated taste and extensive 
reading. They embrace choice paragraphs from the writings of 


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Hannah More, 
Mrs. Jameson, 


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Coleridge, 

Irving, 

Macauley, 
Bethune, 
Caroline Fry, 
Miss Edgeworth, 


D’Israeli, 

Carlyle, 

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Chalmers, 

Charnock, 

Lowell, 

Mrs. Sigourney, 
Miss Jewsbury. 


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/Veto York Christian Observer. 


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sured Thoughts” a delightful and instructive companion.— Home Journal. 


A genuine treasury of what deserve to be “treasured thoughts,” is given m this beautiful volume. 
The selections are from the rich stores of the best writers of pure English, from the earliest period, 
up to and including those of the present, day. Each passage contains some valuable thought or bit 
of Christian philosophy, or some pointed anecdote with a fine moral. Miss May gives evidence of 
very extensive reading, and of reading, too, with profit. Her selections all indicate a high moral 
sense, as well as a delicate and refined taste. Her book will be found to perform the office of a 
library, without the labour of searching for good things through whole ranges of shelves. 


Reared in the seclusion of a refined domestic life, pervaded by an atmosphere of religion and 
fine literary taste, we know what of necessity must be the character of Miss May’s “ Treasured 
Thoughts,” and that they were reallv so to their gentle guardian. So it has proved to be. No 
volume of “ Elegant Extracts,” edited on the spur of the moment, and “ for a consideration”—but a 
collection of years, selected with Judgment, and sincere admiration tor the noble truths or delknte 
■entlmente whieh the passage ountaia .—Saturday Oamstte. 








I 


LINDSAY & BLAKISTON 

PUBLISH THE 

AMERICAN FEMALE POETS: 

WITH 

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL NOTICES, 

BY 

CAROLINE MAY. 

AN ELEGANT VOLUME, WITH A HANDSOME VIGNETTE TITLE, 

AND 

PORTRAIT OF MRS. OSGOOD, 

The Literary contents of this work contain copious selections from 

the writings of 

Anne Bradstreet, Jane Turell, Anne Eliza Bleecker, Margaretta 
V. Faugeres, Phillis Wheatley, Mercy Warren, Sarah Porter, 
Sarah Wentworth Morton, Mrs. Little, Maria A. Brooks, 
Lydia Huntley Sigourney, Anna Maria Wells, Caroline Gil¬ 
man, Sarah Josepha Hale, Maria James, Jessie G. M*Cartee, 
Mrs. Gray, Eliza Follen, Louisa Jane Hall, Mrs. Swift, 

Mrs. E. C. Kinney, Marguerite St. Leon Loud, Luella J. 

Case. Elizabeth Bogart, A. D. Woodbridge, Elizabeth 
Margaret Chandler, Emma C. Embury, Sarah Helena 
Whitman, Cynthia Taggart, Elizabeth J. Fames, 

&e. &»€« &c. 

The whole forming a beautiful specimen of the highly cultivated state oi 
the arts in the United States, as regards the paper, topography, 
and binding in rich and various styles. 

EXTRACTS FROM THE PREFACE. 

One of the most striking characteristics of the present age 
is the number of female writers, especially in the department 
of belles-lettres. This is even more true of the United 
States, than of the old world; and poetry, which is the lan¬ 
guage of the affections, has been freely employed among us 
to express the emotions of woman’s heart. 

As the rare exotic, costly because of the distance from 
which it is brought, will often suffer in comparison of beauty 
and fragrance with the abundant wild flowers of our mea¬ 
dows and woodland slopes, so the reader of our present 
volume, if ruled by an honest taste, will discover in the effu¬ 
sions of our gifted country women as much grace of form, 
and powerful sweetness of thought and feeling, as in the 
blossoms of woman’s genius culled from other lands. 


LINDSAY & BLAKISTON 

PUBLISH THE 

BRITISH FEMALE POETS: 

WITH 

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL NOTICES, 

BY 

GEO. W. BETHUNE. 

AN ELEGANT VOLUME, WITH A HANDSOME VIGNETTE TITLE, 

AND 

PORTRAIT OF THE HON. MRS, NORTON. 

The Literary contents of this work contain copious selections from 

the writings of 

Anne Boleyn, Countess of Arundel, Queen Elizabeth* Ducliess of 
Newcastle, Elizabetli Carter, Mrs. Tighe, Miss Hannah More, 
Mrs. Heinans Lady Flora Hastings, Mrs. Amelia Opie, Miss 
Eliza Cook, Mrs. Southey, Miss Lowe, Mrs. \orton, Elizabeth 
B. Barrett, Catharine Parr, Mary Q,ueen of Scots, Countess 
of Pembroke, Lady Mary Wortley Montague, Mrs. Gre* 
ville, Sirs. Barbauld, Joanna Baillie, Letitia Elizabeth 
Landon, Charlotte Elizabeth, Mary Russell Mitford, 

Sirs. Coleridge, Slary Howitt, Frances Kemble Butler, 

&c. &c. &c. 

The whole forming a beautiful specimen of the highly cultivated state of 
the arts in the United States, as regards the paper, typography, 
and binding in rich and various styles. 

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

In the department of English poetry, we have long looked for a spirit cast in nature’s finest, yet 
most elevated mould, possessed of the most delicate and exquisite taste, the keenest perception 
cf (he innate true and beautiful in poetry, as opposed to their opposites, who could give to us a 
pure collection of the British Female Poets; many of them among the choicest spirits that ever 
graced and adorned humanity. The object of our search, in this distinct and important mission, 
is before us; and we acknowledge at once in Dr Bethune. the gifted poet, the eloquent divine, 
and the humble Christian, one who combines, in an eminent degree, all the characteristics above 
alluded to. It raises the mind loftier, and makes it purified with the soul, to float in an atmosphere 
of spiritual purity, to peruse the elegant volume before u.s, chaste, rich, and beautiful, without and 
within. — The Spectator 


We do not remember to have seen any previous attempt to form a poetical bouquet exclusively 
from gardens planted by female hands, and made fragrant and beautiful by woman’s gentle culture. 
We know few men equally qualilied with the gifted Editor of tins volume for the tasteful and 
judicious selection and adjustment of the various flowers that are to delight with their sweetness, 
soothe with then softness, and impart profit with their sentiment The volume is enriched with 
Biographical Sketches of some sixty jioetesses. each sketch being followed with specimens charac¬ 
teristic of her style and powers of verse In beauty of typography, and general getting up, this 
volume is quite equal to the best issues of its tasteful and enterprising publishers —Episcopal Recorder. 


It is handsome 1 )’ embellished, and may be described as a casket of gems. Dr. Bethune, who ia 
himself a poet of no mean genius, has iii t ins volume exhibited the most refined taste. The work 
may be legarded as a treasury of nearly all the best pieces of British Female Poets.— Inquirer. 


This volume, which is far more suited for a holyday gitl than many which are prepared expressly 
lor the purpose, con lams extracts from all the most distinguished English Female Poets, selected 
with the taste and judgment which we have a right to expect from the eminent divine and highly 
gifted poet «’hose name auorus the title page. It is a rare collection of the richest gems.— Balti- 
oioie American 


Dr. Bethune n.us selected his materials with exquisite taste, culling the fairest and sweetest 
flowers from the expensive field cul’ivated by the British Female Poets. The brief Biogtaphical 
Notices add much interest to the volume, and vastly increase its value. It is pleasant to find hard¬ 
working and close-thinking divines thus recreating themselves, and contributing by their recrea¬ 
tions to the refinement of the age. Dr. Bethune has brought to his task poetic enthusiasm, and a 
eiuiy perception of the pure and beautiful.— N. Y. Commercial. 






LINDSAY & BLAKISTON 

HAVE RECENTLY PUBLISHED, 


SGENES IN THE LIFE OF THE SAVIOUR, 


EY THE 

POETS AND PAINTERS: 


CONTAINING 

MANY GEMS OF ART AND GENIUS, 

ILLUSTRATIVE OF 

THE SAVIOUR’S LIFE AND PASSION. 


EDITED BY THE 

REV. RUFUS GRISWOLD. 


THE ILLUSTRATIONS, WHICH ARE EXQUISITELY ENGRAVED ON STEEL, 
BY JOHN SARTAIN, ARE I 


The Holy Family, painted by N. Poussin; 

The Saviour, by Paul Delaroche; 

Christ by the Well of Sychar, by Emelie Signol; 
The Daughter of Jarius, by Deloime ; 


Walking on the Sea, by Henry Richter; 

The Ten Lepers, by A. Vandyke; 

The Last Supper, by Benjamin West; 

The Women at the Sepulchre, by Philip Viet. 


THE LITERARY CONTENTS, COMPRISING SIXTY-FOUR POEMS, ARE BY 

Milton, Hemans, Montgomery, Kebie, Mrs. Sigourney, Miss Lan« 
don, Dale, Willis, Bulfimjh, Bethune, Longfellow, Whittier, 
Croly, Klopstock, Mrs. Osgood, Picrpont, Crosswell, and 
other celebrated Poets of this and other Countries. 

The volume is richly and beautifully bound in Turkey Morocco, gilt, white 
calf extra, or embossed cloth, gilt edges, sides and back. 


We commend this volume to the attention of those who would place a 
Souvenir in the hands of their friends, to invite them in the purest strains of 
poetry, and by the eloquence of art, to study the Life of the Saviour.— Christ. Obs, 


The contents are so arranged as to constitute a Poetical and Pictorial Life 
of the Saviour, and we can think of no more appropriate gift-book. In typo¬ 
graphy, embellishments, and binding, we have recently seen nothing more 
tasteful and rich .—North American. 


We like this book, as well for its beauty as for its elevated character. Tt 
is just such an one as is suited, either for a library, or a parlour centre-table; 
and no one can arise from its perusal without feeling strongly the sublimity 
and enduring character of the Christian religion .—Harrisburg Telegraph. 


This is truly a splendid volume in all its externals, while its contents are 
richly worthy of the magnificent style in which they are presented. As illus¬ 
trations of the Life and Passion of the Saviour of mankind, it will form an 
appropriate Souvenir for the season in which we commemorate his coming 
upon earth.— Neal’s Gazette. 






ILLUSTRATED BY 


CELEBRATED POETS AND PAINTERS. 


EDITED DY 

H. HASTINGS WELD. 


Eight Illustrations, beautifully Engraved on Steel, by Sartain. 


Hie Redeemer, painted by Decaine—Frontis¬ 
piece ; 

Antioch in Syria, by Harding—Vignette title; 
John reproving Herod, by Le Brun ; 

Christ, with his Disciples, weeping over Jerusa¬ 
lem, by Begas; 


Christ’s charge to Peter, by Raphael; 

Peter and John healing the Lame Man at th 
Beautiful Gate of the Temple, by Raphael, 
Paul before Agrippa, by Sartain: 

John on the Isle of Patmos, by Decaine. 


THE LITERARY CONTENTS CONSIST OF UPWARDS OF SEVENTY POEMS, BY 

Bishop Heber, Lowell, Keble, Hannah F. Gould, Clark, Mrs. 
Ilemans, Mrs. Sigourney, Barton, Bryant, Miss Landon, Tap- 
pan, Pierpont, Longfellow, Miss Davidson, Dale, Cros- 
well, Percival, Bowring, and other celebrated Poets. 

Beautifully bound, in various styles, to match “Scenes in the Life 

of the Saviour.” 


We do not know where we could find a more elegant and appropriate 
present for a Christian friend. It will always have value. It is not one of 
those ephemeral works which are read, looked at, and forgotten. It tells of 
scenes dear (o the hearts of Christians, which must ever find there an abiding 
place .—Banner of the Cross. 


Here is truly a beautiful volume, admirable in design, and perfect in its 
execution. The editor, with a refined taste, and a loving appreciation of 
Scripture history, has selected some of the best writings of ancient and modern 
authors in illustration of various scenes in the Lives of the Apostles, whilst 
his own facile pen has given us in prose a series of excellent contributions. 
The lyre of Heber seems to vibrate again as we turn over its pages ; and 
Keble, Jenner, Cowper, Herrick, Bernard, Barton, and a brilliant host of 
glowing writers, shine again by the light of Christian truth, and the beaming 
effulgence of a pure religion. It is an elegant and appropriate volume for a 
Christmas gift.— Transcript. 


The exterior is novel and beautiful; the typography is in the highest style 
of the art ; and the engravings, nine in number, are among the best efforts 
of Mr. Sartain. The prose articles contributed by the editor are well written ; 
and the poetical selections are made with judgment. The volume is a worthy 
companion of “ Scenes in the Life of the Saviour,” and both are much more 
worthy of Christian patronage than the great mass of annuals.— Presbyterian. 


The above volumes are among the most elegant specimens from the 
American press. In neatness and chasteness of execution, they are perhap/j 
unsurpassed. The engravings are of the highest order; and illustrate most 
strikingly, and with great beauty, some of the most sublime and the most 
touching Scripture scenes. They also contain some of the richest specimens 
of Sacred Poetry, whose subject and style are such as deeply to interest the 
imagination, and at the same time to make the heart better. We hope the 
Christian’s table, at least, may be adorned with the volumes above mentioned, 
and such as these .—New England Puritan. 








LINDSAY & ELAKISTON PUBLISH, 

SCENES IN THE LIVES OF THE PATRIARCHS 

AND PROPHETS j 

A COMPANION TO THE 

SCENES IN THE LIFE OF THE SAVIOUR AND THE APOSTLES. 

EDITED BY THE KEY. H. HASTINGS WELD. 


BEAUTIFULLY ILLUSTRATED BY 


EIGHT ENGRAVINGS ON STEEL, BY SARTAIN. 

INCLUDING 


Saul presenting his Daughter to David. 

A View of Hebron, Vignette Title-page.... 

God's Covenant with Noah. 

Abraham Offering up Isaac. 

The Arrival of Rebekah. 

Jacob at the House of Laban. 

Moses Smiting the Rock... 

Elijah Fed by Ravens. 


Painted by Woodforde. 
“ Bracebridge. 
“ Rothermel. 

u Westall. 

“ Schopin. 

“ Schopin. 

“ Murillo. 

“ Corbould. 


With a choice Selection of Matter from the Writings of 

Milton, Hemans, Wordsworth, Crolt, Willis, Young, Sigourn** 
Whittier, Howitt, Scott, Heber, Montgomery, Milman, 
Hannah More, Watts, Dale, Tappan, and other 
Eminent Writers of this and other Countries. 


Handsomely bound in cloth gilt, Turkey Morocco, or in white calf. 


OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

The character of the scenes represented, the pure and eloquent sacred poetry which 
the work contains, render it a book peculiarly befitting presentation at that season when 
the world is celebrating the birth of its Saviour. We hope this joint effort of the penci 
and pen to render familiar the sacred scenes of the Old Testament, will meet the support 
which it deserves from all lovers of the sacred volume.— Christian Advocate and Journal. 


We do but simple justice when we declare, that it has seldom fallen to our lot to 
notice a book which possesses so many and such varied attractions. Mr. Weld has 
gathered from the best writers the most beautiful of their works, in illustration of his 
theme, and prepared for the reader a rich repast. We are assured that the volume before 
us will, like those which preceded it. come acceptably before the public, and he a favourits 
offering during the approaching holiday season.— Graham's Magazine. 


It is a handsome octavo, beautifully illustrated with engravings on steel, in Sartain’i 
best manner. It is published in uniform style with “The Scenes in the Life of the 
Saviour,” and is every way worthy to continue this fine scries of scriptural works. 
The literary portion of the volume is admirably chosen, embracing many of the most 
distinguished names in America. As a work of art, it is a credit to the book-making 
of our country. —Boston Atlas. 


This is pre-eminently a book of beauty—printed in the best style, on the finest and 
fairest paper, and embellished with the richest specimens of the engraver’s art. Its 
contents comprise a choice selection from the writings of celebrated poets, illustrative 
of the character, the countries, and of the times of the Patriarchs and Prophets. The 
elevated spirit and character of the sacred poetry in this volume, as well as its surpass, 
ing beauty, will render it peculiarly valuable as a present or an ornament fertile parlout 
table.— Christian Observer. 













LINDSAY & BLAKISTON 

HAVE JUST PUBLISHED 

THE WOMEN OF THE SCRIPTURES, 

ED ITED BY THE 


REV. H. HASTINGS WELD; 


WITH 

ORIGINAL LITERARY CONTRIBUTIONS, 

BY 


DISTINGUISHED AMERICAN WRITERS: 


BEAUTIFULLY ILLUSTRATED BY 


TWELVE SUPERB ENGRAVINGS ON STEEL, 

BY ). SARTAIN, PHILADELPHIA, 

FROM ORIGINAL DESIGNS, EXPRESSLY FOR THE WORK, 


BY T. P. ROSSITER, NEW YORK! 

INCLUDING 


Miriam, 

Eve, 

Sarah, 

Rachel, 


Hannah, 

Ruth, 

Queen of Sheba, 
Shunainite, 


Esther, 

The Syropheniciam 
Martha, 

The Marys. 


Elegantly Bound in White Calf, Turkey Morocco, and Cloth 
Extra, with Gilt Edges. 


PREFACE. 

The subject of this book entitles it to a high place among illustrated 
olumes. The execution, literary and artistic, will, we are confident, be 
found worthy of the theme; since we have received the assistance oi 
authors best known in the sacred literature of our country, in presenting, 
in their various important attitudes and relations, the Women of th» 
Scriptures. The contents of the volume were prepared expressly for it, 
with the exception of the pages from the pen of Mrs. Balfour; and for the 
republication of her articles, no one who reads them will require an apology. 
The designs for the engravings are original; and the Publishers trust that 
in the present volume they have made their best acknowledgment for Uie 
favour with which its predecessors have been received. The whole, they 
Delieve, will be found no inapt memento of those to whom St. Peter refers 
the sex for an ensample: “ the holy women, in the old time.” 





W OMEN OF THE SCRIPTURES 


OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

“ The artistieal merits of this work are of a very high order. The plates ar« 
all meritorious, and some of them are eminently beautiful. The engraving of 
‘Miriam’ rejoicing over the destruction of Pharaoh and his host is the frontis¬ 
piece, and would adorn Heath’s Book of Beauty. ‘ Eye,’ as the vignette title, 
is the most exquisite engraving we ever saw. It is spirited, life-like and beauti¬ 
ful. ‘Sarah’ does not please our judgment, but its defects are amply atoned 
for in the engraving of 1 Rachel.’ There are portions of the engraving of 
‘Hannah’ that are very fine, but Hannah’s face is rather childish for a mother. 

* Ruth’ is a beautiful piece of art. The ‘ Queen of Sheba’ is beautiful enough 
to have made Solomon forget some of his wisdom. The ‘ Shunamite,’ ‘ Esther,’ 
The Syrophenician Woman,’ ‘ Martha,’ and the * Mary’s’ are all engravings of 
kiica merit, and several of them are very beautiful. 

“ We cordially commend this book to gentlemen who wish to pay a real com- 
pl.ment to a lady of taste and good judgment. It is no idle rattle for the amuse¬ 
ment of an hour, but is a substantial work of merit.”— Louisville Courier. 

“ This beautiful octavo volume is adorned with twelve illustrations, engraved 
on steel by Sartain, from original designs by Rossiter. We need only say that 
they are of the highest order, and render unnecessary the encouragement of 
foreign artists, while we have in our midst the skill which can furnish such life¬ 
like forms of female loveliness as this volume contains. The paper, type, bind¬ 
ing and decoration ef the work are in entire accordance with its pictorial embel¬ 
lishments, and ihus far, we can pronounce it one of the handsomest volumes that 
has ever issued from the American press.”— Episcopal Recorder. 

“This is an avant courier of those beautiful productions of the press which 
herald the approach of Christmas holidays, when kindly feelings display them¬ 
selves in the presentation of souvenirs. Mr. Weld has already made himself 
favourably known as the editor of several beautiful volumes of this class. In all 
its appliances, this is a rich and sumptuous volume, most specially attractive to 
the eye by its clear typography, and its elegant mezzotint engravings. The lite¬ 
rary contributions are written with a view to instruct, as well as to please. They 
are almost entirely original, and have emanated from skilful pens. We com¬ 
mend the book to those who have any pretension to taste in this department of 
literat u re. ” — Presbyterian. 

“ The pages of this work are also enriched with original contributions from 
some of the ablest and most popular writers, illustrating the sacred themes pre¬ 
sented in its embellishments. 

“ As a book for the holidays and for all seasons—as a book for pure minds and 
an ornament for the centre-table, it is eminently attractive. 

“ This rich and splendid and truly valuable book, has been issued in anticipa¬ 
tion ot the season when many are accustomed to give, or receive tokens of esteem 
and affection. Its workmanship is superlatively elegant and tasteful in every 
respect. It is very beautifully embellished with twelve highly finished engrav¬ 
ings, portraying the characters of those ‘ holy women’ of old, whose names have 
been written among the stars, by the pen of inspiration.”— Christian Observer. 

“It is seldom that we meet with a volume which, like this, blends at once so 
high artistic and literary merit. Among the issues with which the press teems, 
it is a pearl of richness and beauty that relieves the sight. Such additions to the 
fme arts and to our elegant literature, we heartily welcome. The conception of 
the work is admirable, aiming, as it does, at clothing with fresh interest, the 
more prominent female characters whose history is given us in the Bible. In the 
performance of this object, the pens of a number of well known writers have 
been engaged, who throw these characters upon a canvass of life. To do this 
effectually, the power of imagination is made, in prose and in verse, to lend its 
charms, while the art of the engraver, and the skill of the binder have each been 
laid under special c*attribution.”— Christian Rejlectcr. 




> 


BETHUNE’S POEMS, 

LINDSAY & BLAKISTON PUBLISH, 

LAYS OF LOVE AND FAITH 

WITH OTHER 

FUGITIVE POEMS. 

BY THE 

REV. G. W. BETHUNE, D.D. 

This is an elegant Volume, beautifully printed on the finest and whitest 
paper, and richly bound in various styles. 


As one arranges in a simple vase 
A little store of unpretending flowers, 

So gathered I some records of past hours. 

And trust them, gentle reader, to thy grace, 

Nor hope that in my pages thou wilt trace 
The brilliant proof of high poetic powers; 

But dear memorials of happy days, 

When heaven shed blessings on my heart like showers. 
Clothing with beauty e’en the desert place; 

Till I, with thankful gladness in my looks, 

Turned me to God, sweet nature, loving friends, 
Christ’s little children, well-worn ancient books, 

The charm of Art, the rapture music sends; 

And sang away the grief that on man’s lot attends. 


OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

We beg leave to express our thanks to the diligent author of these Poems, for this 
additional and highly valuable contribution to the treasures of American literature. 
The prose writings of Hr. Bethune, by their remarkably pure and ehaste language, 
their depth and clearness of thought, their force and beauty of illustration, and by their 
intelligent and elevated piety, have justly secured to him a place with the very best 
authors of our land, whose works are destined to exert a wide-spread and most salutary 
influence on the forming character and expanding mind of our growing republic. This 
volume of his collected poetry, though it be, as the author observes in his beautiful 
introductory sonnet, but the “gathered records of past hours,” or the fruit of moments 
of industrious relaxation from more severe labours, may without fear take its place by 
the side of our best poetic productions; and there are many pieces in it, which, for 
accuracy of rhythm, for refined sentiment, energy of thought, flowing and lucid ex¬ 
pression, and subduing pathos, are unsurpassed by any writer. 

Exteriorly, and in the matters of paper and typography, this is an elegant volume, 
and so far is a fitting casket for the gems it contains—for gems these beautiful poems 
are, of “purest ray serene”—lustrous jewels—ornaments of purest virgin gold. 

Many hallowed breathings will be found among the poems here collected—all distin¬ 
guished by correct taste and refined feeling, rarely dazzling by gorgeous imagery, but 
always charming by their purity and truthfulness to nature.—A". Y. Commercial. 

The author of this volume has a gifted mind, improved by extensive education; a 
•.heerful temper, chastened by religion; a sound taste, refined and improved by extensive 
observation and much reading, and the gift of poetry .—North American. 

The Volume before us contains much that is truly beautiful; many gems that sparkle 
with genius and feeling. They are imbued with the true spirit of poesy, and may b* 
wad again and again with pleasure.— Inquirer. 







LINDSAY & BLAKISTON 

THE ROSEMARY, 

A COLLECTION 

OF 

SACRED AND RELIGIOUS POETRY, 
/rnm tin ifnglislj null Amtrirint 

WITH 

EIGHT SPLENDID ILLUSTRATIONS ON STEEL BY SARTAIN. 

HtBt of Einbellfshtnrnts. 


MOSES SMITING THE ROCK.MURILLO. 

HEBRON . BRACEBRIDGE 

DANIEL IN THE LIONS’ DEN.ZEIGLER. 

ELIJAH FED BY RAVENS.CORBOULD. 

ABRAHAM OFFERING UP ISAAC.WE STALL. 

GOD’S COVENANT WITH NOAH.ROTHERMEL. 

JOSEPH SOLD BY HIS BRETHREN.ZUCCHI. 


THE WOMEN AT THE SEPULCHRE.P. VIET. 

(gxtrnit from tin 

In presenting in “The Rosemary” some of the choice selections 
of Sacred Poetry in an attractive garb, it is hoped that it will be 
received as an evidence of that religious feeling, which at times has 
actuated most of the great poets, and been displayed in some of their 
finest productions. 

Opinions nf tjjr tyxm. 

This book is a beautiful pearl, rich in the treasures of thought and 
imagination, which form its contents, as well as in the elegance of its cos¬ 
tume, and the delicate and finished engravings which embellish it. — 
Christiaji Observer. 


In this attractive volume we find much to please the eye; but the mcst 
valuable recommendation of the work is found in the lessons of piety, 
virtue, morality, and mercy, which are thrown together in this many-co¬ 
loured garland of poetic flowers .—Episcopal Recorder. 

The volume before us commends itself to every one who with a gift 
would connect the highest sentiment of purity—for it is a casket of spiritual 
gems--radiant with the light of true religion .—Christian Gem. 


This collection is made with great taste, and is, perhaps, the finest ever 
comprised within the limits of one volume.— Godey’s Lady's Book. 












MACKAY’S POPULAR DELUSIONS. 

LINDSAY &, BLAKISTON PUBLISH 

MEMOIRS OF EXTRAORDINARY POPULAR DELUSIONS, 

B Y 

CHARLES MACKAY, 

AUTHOR OF THE “ THAMES AND ITS TRIBUTARIES,” Sec., Sec. 


“The object of the author, in the following pages, has been to collect tho 
most remarkable instances of these moral epidemics which have been excited, 
■ometimes by one cause, sometimes by another, and so show how easily the 
masses have been led astray, and how imitative and gregarious men are, even 
in their infatuations and crimes.” 


CONTENTS 


The Mississippi Scheme. 

The South Sea Bubble. 

The Tulipomania. 

Relics. 

Modern Prophecies. 

Popular Admiration for Great Thieves. 
Influence of Politics and Religion on the 
Hair and Beard. 

Duels and Ordeals. 

Popular Follies in Great Cities. 

The O. P. Mania. 

The Thugs, or Phansigars. 


The Witch Mania. 

The Slow Poisoners. 

The Crusaders. 

Haunted Houses. 

Philosophical Delusions. 

Introductory Remarks. 

The Alchyrnists, or Searches for the Philoso¬ 
pher’s Stone and the Waters of Life. 
Fortune-Telling. 

The Magnetizers. 

And various other subjects. 


Two more interesting volumes than these we have rarely perused. Through 
the whole runs a vein of clear perception of what is right and true, which 
enhances the value of the book for domestic reading.— Commercial Advertiser. 

A more useful work has not been published for many a day, or one that is 
as well calculated to open the eyes of the credulous to the arts of the design¬ 
ing speculator, or shield the thoughtless from the evils of popular errors.— 
Saturday Courier. 

This is a truly interesting and instructive work. The history is that of the 
frailties and follies of poor human nature, and it may be read with profit by 
all who are apt to give way to credulity and impulse.— Pennsyl'n Inquirer. 

Every delusion noted in the work is a story, and every story is full of interest; 
it has all the charm of fiction, and must continually excite the surprise of the 
reader that such things could be to excite “special wonder.”— Balt. Patriot. 

The subject is one of profound interest; the branches on which the author 
^ouches are numerous and varied ; and from these facts and his established 
ability, we cannot but regard the work as a valuable one, promising to reward 
►he attention which it will be sure to excite.— N. American and U. S. Gazette. 


The whole range of subjects has a fundamental character, for we all take 
pleasure in considering the infirmities of our fellows; and this detailed and 
connected history of them appeals to one of the most prevalent and powerful 
of human sympathies. The conception of the work is not inferior to tho 
execution. Its extensive circulation will not only entertain many, but, by the 
engrafting of its author’s plain, common-sense views, it will open the eyes 
of many to the delusions of the present enlightened age.— Evening Bulletin. 

The Memoirs of Extraordinary Popular Delusions form a wide field for the 
author His object has been to collect the most remarkable instances of those 
moral epidemics which have been excited, and show how easily the ma3:»?8 
are led astray in their infatuations and crimes.— Daily Sun. 



LINDSAY &, BLAKISTON PUBLISH 


WATSON’S 

DICTIONARY OF POETICAL QUOTATIONS 

CONSISTING OF 

ELEGANT EXTRACTS ON EVERY SUBJECT, 


COMPILED FROM VARIOUS AUTHORS, AND 

APPROPRIATE HEADS, 


ARRANGED UNDER 


BY JOHN T. WATSON, M. D., 

WITH 

NINE SPLENDID ILLUSTRATIONS ON STEEL, 


INCLUDING 


The Noontide Dream, 

Contemplation, 

Modesty, 

The Thunder-Storm, 


The Village Tomb-Cutter, 
The Parting Wreath, 
Bereavement, 

The Bashful Lover, 


Love and Innocence. 


OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

We may safely recommend this book as a collection of some of the most beautiful conception*, 
elegantly expressed, to be found in the range of English and American poetry.— Saturday Courier. 


We regard this as the best book of a similar character yet published.— Germantown Telegraph. 


In this Dictionary of Quotations every subject is touched upon; and, while the selection has been 
carefully made, it has the merit of containing the best thoughts of the Poets of our own day, which 
no other collection has.— U. S. Gazette. 


The selections in this book are made with taste from all poets of note, and are classed under a 
great variety of subjects.— Presbyterian. 


The Quotations appear to have been selected with great judgment and taste, by one well acquainted 
with whatever is most elegant and beautiful in the whole range of literature.— Christian Observer. 


A volume exhibiting industry and taste on the part of the compiler, which will often facilitate re¬ 
searches in the mines of gold whence it was dug.— Maysville Eagle. 


In his arrangement, the compiler has assigned the immortal Shakspeare his deserved pre-eminence, 
and illumined his pages with the choicest beauties of the British Poets .—Herald. 


We do not hesitate to commend it to our poetry-loving readers, as a book worth buying, and worth 
reading.— Clinton Republican. 


The extracts display great care and taste on the part of the editor, are arranged in chronological 
order, and embrace passages from all the poets, from the earliest period of our literature to the pre¬ 
serf, time.— State Gazette. 


This book will be read with interest, as containing the best thoughts of the best poets, and is con¬ 
venient for reference, because furnishing appropriate quotations to illustrate a vast variety of subjects. 
—Old Colony Memorial. 


We view it as a casket filled with the most precious gems of 1 naming and fancy, and so arranged 
as to fascinate, at a glam e, the delicate eye of taste. By referring to the index, which is arranged in 
alphabetical order, you can find, in a moment, the best ideas of the most inspired poets of this country 
as well as Europe, U[ on any desired subject.— Chrotiicle. 













THE 


LINDSAY & BLAKISTON 

PUBLISH 

LIFE, LETTERS AND POEMS 

O F 

BERNARD BARTON. 

EDITED BY HIS DAUGHTER. 

With a Portrait* 

Extract from the Preface. 

In compiling the present volume, it has been the wish of the editor, in 
some measure, to carry out her father’s favourite but unfulfilled design 
of an autobiography. It is with reference to this that both the letters 
and poems have been selected. The great bulk of the poems are reli¬ 
gious ; but there are not wanting those of a lighter character, which will 
be found to be the wholesome relaxation of a pure, good, and essentially 
religious mind. These may succeed each other as gracefully and bene¬ 
ficently as April sunshine and showers over the meadow. So, indeed, 
such moods followed in his own mind, and were so revealed in his do¬ 
mestic intercourse. 


OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

This is a very handsome volume, enriched with a neat and graphic portrait 
of the worthy quaker lyrist, and forms a valuable addition to our poetical 
literature. In the interesting Memoir and rich collection of Epistolary Re¬ 
mains, the fair editress has conferred a most acceptable favour upon the many 
admirers of her gifted parent. Among the correspondence are letters from 
Southey, Charles Lamb, Sir Walter Scott, and other distinguished cotempo- 
ries .—Evening Bulletin. _ 

The poems of this meritorious writer, better known by the name of the 
Quaker Poet, have long been popular in England, and are much admired 
in this country for their simplicity and warmth of feeling .—-American and 
Commercial Advertiser, Baltimore. 


Barton was a Quaker, but mingled a good deal with the “world’s people,” 
at least with such as were, like himself, addicted to literary pursuits. His 
correspondence with Southey and Charles Lamb, is full of interest. Many 
of his poems are very beautiful; and the present volume is worth a place in 
every good library .—Evening Transcript. 




LINJJSAY & BLAKISTON PUBLISH, 

THE MIRROR OF LIFE, 

A TRULY AMERICAN BOOK, ENTIRELY ORIGINAL, 

PRESENTING A VIEW OF THE PROGRESS OF LIFE, 

FROM INFANCY TO OLD AGE: 

Illustrated by a series of Eleven Engravings, beautifully 
executed on Steel, 

BY J. SARTAIN, PHILADELPHIA, 


INCLUDING 

Infancy, (Vignette Title,) Designed.by Schmitz. 

Childhood, Painted. “ Eichholtz. 

Boyhood, (Frontispiece,) Painted.“ Osgood. 

Girlhood. “ Rossiter. 

Maidenhood... “ Rothermel. 

The Bride.-....“ Rossiter. 

The Mother... “ Rossiter. 

The Widow. “ Rossiter. 

Manhood, Designed... “ Rothermel. 

Old Age.“ Rothermel. 

The Shrouded Mirror, Designed.“ Rev. Dr. Morton. 


The literary contents comprise original articles in prose and verse, from 

the pens of 

Rev. G. W. Bethune, Rev. Clement M. Butler, Mrs. Sigourney, Mbs 
Osgood, Mrs. Hale, Mrs. Ellet, J. T. Headley, Rev. M. A. D* 
Wolfe Howe, Miss Sedgwick, Rev. Wm. B. Sprague, Rev. 

H. Hastings Weld, Miss Caroline E. Roberts, Bushrod 
Bartlett, Esq.., Alice G. Lee, Hope Hesseltine, 

AND OTHER FAVOURITE AUTHORS OF OUR OWN COUNTRY. 

EDITED BY MRS. L. C. TUTHILL, 

And richly bound in various styles. 


OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

This is an elegant volume; with an excellent design, combining all that is attractive 
in typographical execution, with beautiful engravings, it illustrates the progress of 
human life in a series of mezzotints of the most finished style. These handsome pic¬ 
tures present boyhood and girlhood, the lover and the loved, the bride and the mother, 
the widow and old age, with many other scenes that will leave a pleasing and salutary 
impression. The literary department is executed by a variety of able and entertaining 
writers, forming altogether a beautiful gift-book, appropriate to all seasons.—JV. Y. Ob 
server 


A most beautiful gem of a book, and a superb specimen of artistical skill, as well as 
a “Mirror of Life.” As a brilliant and tasteful ornament for the centre-table, or a 
memento of affection and good wishes, to be presented in the form of a Birthday, 
Christmas, or New Year’s gift, to a friend, it is richly entitled to the consideration and 
patronage of the public.— Christian Observer. 


The idea is a happy one, and the work is every way worthy of its subject. Without 
being too costly, it is in every respect a very handsome volume; the sentiments it con¬ 
tains are not only unobjectionable, but salutary; and we cannot conceive a gift of the 
kind which, between intelligent friends, would be more acceptable to the receiver w 
aonourable to the giver.—JV*. Y. Commercial. 
















LINDSAY & BLAKISTON’S PUBLICATIONS. 


A BOOK FOR EVERY CHRISTIAN, 

THE SECOND EDITION. 


MEMOIR OF MISS MARGARET MERCER. 

BY CASPAR MORRIS, M. D. 

A neat 18 mo. volume, with a beautiful Engraved 

PORTRAIT OF MISS MERCER, 

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

Miss Mercer was a daughter of the late Governor Mercer, of Maryland. Her father. 
Who was a Virginian, and the descendant of a distinguished family, removed to Straw¬ 
berry Hill, near Annapolis, Md., soon after his marriage. In the memoir of the daughter, 
tve have the moral portraiture of a character of great moral worth. Miss Mercer was 
a Christian, who earnestly sought to promote the glory of the Saviour, in persevering 
efforts to be useful in every position, and especially as a teacher of the young. Her 
energy of mind and elevated principles, united with humility and gentleness, and devoted 
piety, illustrated in her useful life, rendered her example worthy of a lasting memorial. 
The work is accompanied by numerous extracts from her correspondence. — Christian 
Observer. _ 


The perusal of this Memoir will do good; it shows how much can be accomplished by 
superior talents, under the control of a heart imbued with love to the Saviour. The 
contemplation of the character of Miss Mercer may lead others to put forth similar 
efforts, and reap a like reward.— Christian Chronicle. 


It is impossible to read this Memoir without the conviction that Miss Mercer was a 
very superior woman, both in her attainments and her entire self-consecration. In 
laying down the book, we feel alike admiration for the biographer and the subject of the 
Memoir.— Presbyterian. 


WATSON’S NEW DICTIONARY OF POETICAL QUOTATIONS. 

A neat 12mo. Volume in plain and extra bindings. 


A NEW DICTIONARY OF POETICAL QUOTATIONS, 

CONSISTING OF ELEGANT EXTRACTS ON EVERY SUBJECT, 

Compiled from various Authors, and arranged under appropriate heads, 

BIT JOHN T. WATSON, M.D. 

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

We may safely recommend this book as a collection of some of the most beautiful 
conceptions, elegantly expressed, to be found in the range of English and American 
yoetry.— Saturday Courier. 

— We regard this as the best book of a similar character yet published.— Germantown 
Telegruph. _ 

In this Dictionary of Quotations every subject is touched upon; and, while the selec- 
ion has been carefully made, it has the merit of containing the best thoughts of the 
Voets of our own day, which no other collection has.— U. S. Gazette. 


The selections in this book are made with taste from all poets of note, and are classed 
mder a great variety of subjects.— Presbyterian. 

The Quotations appear to have been selected with great judgment and taste, by one 
well acquainted with whatever is rtosl elegant and beautiful in the whole range of 
itorature .—Christian Observer 















LINDSAY & BLAKISTON PUBLISH 

THE FOLLOWING POPULAR BOOKS. 

a dTctTonary 

OF 

SYNONYMICAL TERMS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, 

BY THE REV. JAMES HAWSON, A. M. 

One volume, 12mo. 

The object of this work is to furnish the student and writer with a 
manual, at once full, comprehensive, and easy of reference. The col¬ 
lection of synonymes is believed to be more copious than in any other 
work extant; and it is hoped that the arrangement adopted will afford 
peculiar facilities for consultation. A dictionary of synonymes is con¬ 
sulted rather to assist the memory than to improve the judgment; this is 
designed as a manual for the desk, and for constant use. 

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

Of the various books of English Synonymes that have been published, none is at once so com¬ 
pact, comprehensive, clear and correct, as this one. The number of synonymical terms is larger 
than any previous work contains; and there is nothing superfluous—no unnecessary remarks, which 
are more calculated to bewilder than to inform. It will make an admirable desk companion for 
the man of letters.— Evening Bulletin. _ 

It is a very copious collection, and they are well arranged for reference. The book should be on 
the table of every writer, as a refresher of the memory.— Daily Sun. 

It furnishes the student and writer with a manual at once full, comprehensive, and easv of refer¬ 
ence. The collection of Synonymes is copious, and the arrangement is peculiarly adapted to afford 
facilities for consultation.— Pennsylvania Inquirer. 

THE CONVICT SHIP> 

WITH A PREFACE, 

BY THE REV. J. H. FOWLES. 

One volume, 12mo, 

A Narrative of the Results of Scriptural Instruction and Moral Discipline 
on board the “ Earl Grey.” By C. A. Browning, M. D., Surgeon in the 
Royal Navv, from the fourth London edition, with a Preface by the Rev. 
James H. Fowles, Rector of the Church of the Epiphany, Philadelphia. 

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.”—Hosea iv. 6. 

“ The gospel of Christ is the powerof God unto salvation to every one that believeth.”—Rom. i. 16. 

Extract from the American Preface. 

This little volume will fill the heart of every benevolent reader with wonder and gratitude. 
Its author is an intelligent, pious, and zealous Surgeon of the Royal Navy — who was placed in 
charge of some two or three hundred English convicts, during their transportation, on board the 
Earl Grey , to the penal colony of Van Diemen's Land. His work consists of a narrative, told in a 
perspicuous and interesting style, of a successful attempt to elevate these unpromising subjects out 
of that state of ignorance and sin in which they were found. The means employed were simple, 
yet enlightened, self-denying, and kind; and their results are of a character so encouraging, that 
they will scarcely be anticipated by the believer, and cannot be understood by the infidel. 

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

The work is not only deeply interesting, but it affords a truly forcible and happy illustration of 
the effects of kindness and benevolence, even upon the abandoned, the outcast, and the con¬ 
victed.— Penn. Inquirer. _ 

We have not space to say all we could wish in commendation of this work : and shall merely 
add, that we gather from the author’s preface that the voyage in the Earl Grey was the fifth he 
had made and conducted on a similar plan, and that still greater success had subsequently at¬ 
tended his sixth and seventh voyages, in two other convict vessels. Happily, we have no “Penal 
Colony” to which to transport offenders against society, and therefore the instruction to be de¬ 
rived from this narrative may not serve to convey any practical instruction to our Navy; yet the 
example of Surgeon B. is worthy of study and imitation, by all who take an interest in the moral 
amelioration of the inmates of our Penitentiaries and other receptacles of the guilty and de 
praved; and, on that account, strongly commends itself to public favour.— Evening Bulletin. 





CHESTERFIELDIAN POCKET MANUALS 
OE ETIQUETTE, &c. 


LINDSAY AND BLAKISTON have just issued new editions of this popular 
series of Manuals, some of which have met with so much favour 
as to have passed through more than Twenty 
Editions. The series includes— 

THE YOUNG- HUSBAND, 

A. MANUAL OF THE DUTIES, MORAL, RELIGIOUS, AND DOMESTIC, 
IMPOSED BY THE RELATION OF MARRIED LIFE. 

THE YOUNG- WIPE, 

A MANUAL OF MORAL, RELIGIOUS, AND DOMESTIC DUTIES, 
BEING A COMPANION TO “THE YOUNG HUSBAND.” 

ETIQUETTE FOR GENTLEMEN, 

OR, SHORT RULES AND REFLECTIONS FOR CONDUCT IN SOCIETY. 

ETIQUETTE FOR LADIES, 

WITH HINTS ON THE PRESERVATION, IMPROVEMENT, ETC., OF FEMALE BEAUTY. 

THE HAND BOOK FOR THE MAN OF FASHION, 

OR CANONS OF GOOD BREEDING, 

BY THE AUTHOR OF “ETIQUETTE FOR GENTLEMEN.” 

Eacb volume contains an illuminated title-page, and is neatly bound in 
embossed cloth, with plain or gilt edges, and gilt sides, 
suitable for the centre-table. 


THE YOUNG LADIES’ HOME, 

BY MRS. L. O. TUTHILL, 

AUTHOR OF “I WILL BE A LADY,” “ I WILL BE A GENTLEMAN,” Ac., 4cc. 

“A Traveller betwixt life and death; 

The reason firm, the temperate will, 

Endurance, foresight, strength and skill, 

To warn, to comfort and command; 

And yet a spirit still and bright. 

With something of an angel light.” 

Wordsworth. 

A neat 12mo volume, in embossed cloth, with plain ot gilt edges. 

The object which the intelligent author of this volume has in view, is to awaken 
the attention of young ladies to the important duties of life which devolve upon 
them, after they have ceased their scholastic exercises. In doing so, she endea¬ 
vours to teach them something of the formation of character, and offers them 
various useful hints for their improvement, mentally and physically; explains to 
them the station they are to occupy in society, and sets before them in its true 
light the responsibility they incur by a neglect of their proper duties, in their too 
eager pursuit of the follies of the day. Such a book cannot fail to be useful, and 
VfO hope it may be read extensively .—Baltimore American. 



A NEW AND BEAUTIFUL AMERICAN GIFT-BOOK. 

ALTOGETHER ORIGINAL. 


LINDSAY AND BLAKISTON 


HAVE JUST PUBLISHED 

THE AMERICAN GALLERY OF ART, 

WITH 

ELEVEN ILLUSTRATIONS, ENGRAVED ON STEEL. 

FROM 

PAINTINGS BY AMERICAN ARTISTS, 


LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Froissart reading his Chronicle to Queen Philippa 

Vignette Title Page. 

The Artist's Dream...... 

The Rose-Bud. 

The First Ship. 

Taking Sanctuary ...... 

The Haunted Stream.. 

Zaida.. 

Tired of Play. 

Peasant Girl of Frascati. 

Cascade near the Falls of the Kanhawa. 


Painted by Rothermel. 

Painted by Thomas Buchanan Rear 
Designed by John Sartain. 

Painted by Thomas Sully. 

Painted by Joshua Shaw. 

Painted by W. E. Winner. 

Painted by James Hamilton. 
Painted by Samuel B. Waugh. 
Painted by John Neagle. 

Painted by S. S. Osgood. 

Painted by Russell Smith. 


WITH 

POETICAL AND PROSE CONTRIBUTIONS, 

BY DISTINGUISHED AMERICAN AUTHORS. 

An elegant quarto volume, richly bound in cloth, gilt, with an 
emblematical side stamp, in gold. 

It has long been the desire of Mr. Sartain, as he states in the preface, to pre. 
sent a work on the “Painters of America, richly embellished with engraved 
specimens from the labours of all the meritorious artists of the country”—a great 
and expensive undertaking, only, perhaps, capable of accomplishment, by giving 
to the work a periodic character, and issuing the successive volumes, at the gift- 
season, in the splendid form of annuals. Thus, ultimately, may be completed, 
according to the original design, a gallery of American Painters, in which “ every 
artist of merit in the country will be represented.” 

The present volume opens the series very successfully, with eleven plates in 
mezzotint, all of them engraved by Mr. Sartain in his best style, from designs 
by Sully, Rothermel, Read, Waugh, Shaw, Neagle, Winner. Smith, Hamilton, 
Osgood, and Sartain himself,—some of them highly beautiful and imaginative 
pieces. The poetical and prose illustrations are by well-known and popular 
American writers. We cannot doubt the success of a publication so well adapted 
for the purposes of a gift-book and an ornament to the parlour and boudoir.— 
North American. 

The purpose of this work is to furnish a gallery of characteristic specimens 
from the works of the “ Painters of America,” where every artist of merit in 
the country will be represented. Its literary department will be original, whilst 
its gems of art will be faithful representations of the most interesting productions 
of domestic genius, talent, and acquirement in the use of the brush. The work 
is truly American, and, as such, will command that to which it is justly entitl'd, 
a generous and extensive support .—Episcopal Recorder. 














BEAUTIFUL AND ATTRACTIVE JUVENILE BOOKS 
FOR YOUNG PEOPLE, 

PUBLISHED BY 

LINDSAY AND BLAKISTON, 

PHILADELPHIA. 

BUDS AND BLOSSOMS FOR CHILDREN, 

BY MBS. HUGHES, 

AUTHOR OP ‘‘AUNT MARY’S TALES,” ‘‘ORNAMENTS DISCOVERED,” &c., &c. t 
WITH TWENTY-FIVE ILLUSTRATIONS, 

Beautifully bound in cloth, gilt. 

Mrs. Hughes is well known as one of our most popular contributors, and it is 
conceded that her tales for children are among the best juvenile works extant. 
The first volume ever published by her has gone through an incredible number 
of London and American editions, and we are persuaded that her present offering 
to the juveniles will prove quite as acceptable as “ Ornaments Discovered” were 
to their older brothers and sisters. The typographical execution of the “Buds 
and Blossoms” is exquisite, and it is illustrated by excellent and numerous en¬ 
gravings.— Neal's Gazette. 

This little volume contains several very pretty stories, told in a pleasant, cap¬ 
tivating vein, that will make the book a universal favourite with the young folks. 
The illustrations, also, are spirited, and will add to the attractiveness of the hand¬ 
some volume. Mrs. Hughes is the author of “ Aunt Mary’s Tales,” which is a 
sufficient surety for a hearty welcome from youthful readers, and from parents who 
desire that their children’s reading shall do them good .—New York Commercial. 


THE CHILD’S OWN BOOK OF ANIMALS, 

WITH 

TWELVE LARGE AND BEAUTIFULLY COLOURED ILLUSTRATIONS. 

This is a beautiful and attractive volume for children; the plates are large, 
each containing many figures, and are beautifully coloured: each plate is accom¬ 
panied by letter-press, in large type, containing a history and description of the 
animal represented. It will also answer for a drawing-book for children who are 
fond of that amusement. 

. Neatly bound in red cloth. 


GEOGRAPHY FOR YOUNG PEOPLE, 
PRETTILY ILLUSTRATED, AND BOUND FOR PRESENTS. 

MY LITTLE GEOGRAPHY, 

FOR LITTLE GIRLS AND BOYS. 

As I have learned to read and spell 
This little book I’ll buy. 

And study all about the eaith 
On which we live and die. 

EDITED BY MBS. L. C. TUTHILL, 

WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS. 

The great design of the authoress of this little book appears to have been to 
arrest the attention of the child, and by gradual and pleasant steps to lead the 
juvenile mir.d into higher and broader branches of useful knowledge. We cor¬ 
dially recommend it as deserving the attention of parents and teachers.— Inquirer. 













THE BOYS AND GIRLS' MISCELLANY, 

CONSISTING- OF 

ORIGINAL STORIES, POETRY, BIOGRAPHY, ANECDOTES, CHARADES, &C,, &C, 

ALL ADAPTED TO 

THE COMPREHENSION OF CHILDREN, 

AND PREPARED BOTH WITH A VIEW TO THEIR AMUSEMENT AND INSTRUCTION, 

WITH OVER 

FIFTY BEAUTIFULLY EXECUTED ILLUSTRATIONS. 

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

“This is a very attractive work for young people, and can scarcely fail of 
becoming a favourite.”— National Standard. 

“ The matter is appropriate, various and pleasing—the wood-cuts good, and 
the coloured title very tasteful.”— Presbyterian. 

“ We cheerfully recommend this work to our juvenile readers.”— Bee. 

“ This work contains much that is entertaining to children—wholesome and 
pleasing moral tales, short anecdotes, conveying useful truths, and poetry which 
children will not soon forget; it may be confidently recommended to parents.” 
—Trenton Gazette. 

“ This work cannot fail to improve the minds of young people, and fit them 
for the important position that they are hereafter to occupy.” — Christian 
Repository. 

“ Its design is good, and its execution commendable, and evinces on the part 
of the editor both taste and tact.”— Spirit of the Times. 

“ We cheerfully recommend this work as an excellent publication for youth.” 
—Recorder. 


ALADDIN, 

OR 

THE WONDERFUL LAMP. 

EDITED BY 

LAWRENCE LOVECHILD. 

AND 

ILLUSTRATED BY SIXTEEN EXQUISITE ENGRAVINGS, 

FROM ORIGINAL DESIGNS BY DARLEY, 
BEAUTIFULLY COLOURED. 


This is one of the most interesting stories from the Arabian Nights’ Enter* 
tamments, edited for children, and bound in an attractive style, suitable for 
presents. 





LINDSAY & BLAKISTON 

PUBLISH 

AUNT MARY’S TALES, 

BY MRS. HUGHS, 

AUTHOR OF “BUDS AND BLOSSOMS,” “ IVY WREATH,” ETC. ETC. 

A SERIES OF JUVENILE BOOKS, 

FOR 

Tilth 1501(3 nttit Tilth <®irls. 

EACH VOLUME ILLUSTRATED BY A COLOURED FRONTISPIECE, 

Ten Volumes, square 16mo., 

CONTAINING AS FOLLOWS: 

THE YOUNG ARTIST, OR SELF-CONQUEST 
THE YOUNG SAILOR, OR PERSEVERANCE REWARDED. 
HOLIDAYS IN THE COUNTRY, OR VANITY DISAPPOINTED. 
GENEROSITY, OR THE STORY OF SYBELLA AND FLORENCE. 
THE MOTHER’S BIRTHDAY, OR THE BROKEN VASE. 

LISSIE LINDEN, OR HER MOCKING-BIRD. 

THE GIPSEY FORTUNE-TELLER, OR THE TROUBADOUR. 
FRANK WORTHY, OR THE ORPHAN AND HIS BENEFACTOR. 
MAY MORNING, OR A VISIT TO THE COUNTRY. 

THE PROUD GIRL HUMBLED, OR THE TWO SCHOOLMATES. 

NOTICES OF THE PRESS. 

We are glad to see a lady of Mrs. Hughs’ abilities so usefully employed. 
Her stories are written in an engaging style, which will insure their eager 
perusal, while they convey sound instruction in regard to the improvement 
of the temper, and the proper cultivation of the domestic and social affec¬ 
tions .—Saturday Courier. 


A series of highly attractive little books for juvenile readers from the 
pen of Mrs. Hughs, which are happily narrated in a style and manner cal¬ 
culated to awaken an interest in the minds of the young, and blend instruc¬ 
tion with amusement, in forms adapted to promote their improvement.—- 
Christian Observer. 



LINDSAY & BLAKISTON 

PUBLISH 

MY LITTLE GEOGRAPHY, 

FOR 

PRIMARY SCHOOLS AND FOR BEGINNERS. 

WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS. 

EDITED BY MRS. L. C. TUTHILL. 

RECOMMENDATIONS. 

From Mrs. E. W. Phelps, Principal of the Female Seminary, Shepherdstown, Jefferson County, Va. 

Messrs. Lindsay Blakiston :—“My Little Geography” is the favourite volume of my younger pu¬ 
pils, who have been charmed with the chapters they have studied, and delighted at finding they could 
commit the sprightly little verses to memory. Such an elementary treatise was quite a deside¬ 
ratum, and I am pleased that the idea suggested itself to a person capable of carrying it out, in a 
style so peculiarly adapted to instruct and interest the young. 

Very respectfully yours, 

E. W. PHELPS. 


From J. E. LoveU, Principal of the Lancasterian School, New Haven, Conn. 

I have examined a little work, by Mrs. L. C. Tuthill, entitled “My Little Geography.” It is by no 
means an easy task to write well for young children, but this performance is, I think, highly success¬ 
ful. Its language is simple and chaste; its sentences concise, and its topics so treated that the 
youngest pupil will easily understand them. Several books for beginners in Geography—excellent in 
most respects—have been published within a few years; but they are, without an exception, so far 
as my knowledge extends, too comprehensive, and above the capacities of those for whose particular use 
they were intended. Mrs. Tuthill’s little work may be used as introductory to either of them, with 
great advantage; it will do its own part well, and open the way for the better accomplishment of 
that which belongs to its successors. I hope it may have an extensive circulation. 

J. E. LOVELL. 


OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

This is the title of a captivating little book for children, by which they are led, almost insensibly, into 
a knowledge of geographical terms.— Commercial Advertiser. 

\ 

Than this unpretending little work we have never seen a more useful or appropriate school-book, 
or one more admirably calculated for beginners in geography; we can recommend it, without 
fear of responsibility, to our seminaries, as well deserving a trial.— Southern Patriot. 


We welcome, with particular pleasure, this little work; the author has succeeded admirably in pro¬ 
ducing a book which must prove a valuable auxiliary to parents and teachers, as well as a delight¬ 
ful and instructive companion for children.— Saturday Courier. 


This is an attractive, we must add, entertaining book; as a first Geography for children, it is ad¬ 
mirably suited to their capacities, and its embellishments cannot fail to interest them.— Christian 
Observer. 


This is a most admirable work for young beginners in Geography; it should be introduced into fami¬ 
lies and schools.— Intelligencer u nd Journal 








LINDSAY & 8LAKIST0N PUBLISH 

A VISIT TO 

THE MENAGERIE, 

B Y 

A FATHER AND HIS CHILDREN. 

AN ORIGINAL WORK, 

WITH 

BEAUTIFUL ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Bound in an attractive style. 


EXTRACT FROM THE PREFACE. 

Young people are easily attracted to the ardent pursuit of know¬ 
ledge, and especially that of natural science, by presenting its ele¬ 
ments to their mind in a pleasing form. Narrative, conversation, 
the graphic art, and the actual specimens, furnish the most ready 
and effectual means of awakening their curiosity. 


THE CHILD’S OWN BOOK OF ANIMALS, 

WITH 

TWELVE LARGE AND BEAUTIFULLY COLOURED ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Neatly bound in embossed clotb. 


This is a beautiful and attractive volume for children ; the plates 
are large, each containing many figures, and are beautifully 
coloured: each plate is accompanied by letter-press, in large type, 
containing a history and description of the animal represented. It 
will also answer for a drawing-book for children who are fond of 
that amusement. 







LINDSAY & BLAKISTON PUBLISH 


CHARACTERISTICS OF LITERATURE, 

ILLUSTRATED BY THE GENIUS OF DISTINGUISHED MEN, 

B Y 

HENRY F. TUOKEEMAN, 

AUTHOR OF “THOUGHTS ON THE POETS,” “ARTIST LIFE,” ETC. 

A neat 12mo. volume. 


The Philosopher... 
The Dilettante .... 

The Moralist. 

The Wit. .. 

The Philanthropist 
The Humorist .... 
The Historian 

The Idealist. 

The Rhetorician .. 

The Scholar. 

The Biographer ... 


CONTENTS. 

..Sir Thomas Browne. 

..Shenstone. 

.William Ellery Channing. 

.Dean Swift. 

.William Roscoe. 

.Charles Lamb. 

... ..T. Babington Macaulay. 

..John Sterling. 

.Edmund Burke. 

.Mark Akenside. 

.Final-Memorials of Lamb and Keats. 


This forms, for the traveller, the sojourner at a watering-place, or in the 
country, an agreeable volume for summer reading. It is of a higher order ot 
merit than the light literature of the day, while it is less diffuse than works 
of a more standard character; it will be found both instructive and enter¬ 
taining. 


OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 

He has happily chosen Sir Thomas Browne as the representative of the 
Philosopher; Channing, of the Moralist; Roscoe, of the Philanthropist; 
Lamb, of the Humorist; Macaulay, of the Historian, &c. A glance at its 
pages, and a knowledge of the author, assures us that it will be admitted as 
one of the happiest works that has proceeded from his pen—discriminating 
with distinctions, with the accessary illustrations of a man of taste and tra¬ 
vels.— Literary World. 

The idea is a happy one, that of delineating the various forms of literary 
eharacter, by selecting some single specimen from each class, and analysing 
Us peculiarities. The execution is distinguished by the good sense and good 
taste which mark most of Mr. Tuckerman’s criticisms.— Evening Post. 

Mr. Tuckerman never attempts anything that he does not thoroughly per¬ 
form. Equally successful, both in prose and verse, in this volume he has 
thrown the graceful charm of his polished diction around the characters he 
has selected for analysis. No one can take up the book without being de¬ 
lighted at every step of their progress.— Boston Atlas. 

Those who like to think as they read, will find much pleasure in this de¬ 
lightful volume.— Baltimore American. 

For a companion under a tree, in the present season, we could commend 
few books as confidently as “ The Characteristics of Literature,” by Tucker¬ 
man—a gentle-thoughted, discriminating, tasteful series of analytical portraits 
of distinguished men.— Home Journal. 

Those who like to think as they read, will find much pleasure in this ana¬ 
lytical volume.— American. 

He has given us a very entertaining volume, that cannot fail to be popular 

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